Brazil started its own flu vaccine production on Thursday, aimed at achieving self-sufficiency in the sector.

The Brazilian authorities said the vaccine will be produced by the Butanta Institute, in Sao Paulo, with a production capacity of 40 million vaccines per year. The institute is now one of the five labs in the world to be licensed to produce the vaccine.

The project was carried out under a technology transfer agreement signed with French pharmaceutical company Sanofi-Aventis in 1999, when Brazil launched its national campaign to protect the elderly against seasonal influenza. Butanta"e;s production capacity will be twice the amount necessary to fulfill the campaign.

The production of the vaccine will cost 78 million reals (38.6 million U.S. dollars), which is expected to help the Brazilian government save 100 million reals (49.5 million dollars) in treatment expenses per year.

The Health Ministry said the project will universalize public immunization in Brazil, which is currently available only to citizens over the age of 60.

Source:Xinhua