JAMP Pharma Group signs a landmark partnership agreement for the commercialization of five biosimilar medicines in Canada

BOUCHERVILLE, QC, Jan. 14, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - Canadian pharmaceutical company JAMP Pharma Group has signed an exclusive agreement with global speciality biopharmaceutical company Alvotech for the Canadian commercial rights to five biosimilars. The current market value of the branded sales for these five biosimilars is estimated to be exceeding $2 billion annually in Canada.

"We are thrilled with this partnership, as it will allow the JAMP Pharma Group to become a major player and partner in this market while continuing to expand our traditional generic portfolio, which should surpass 500 products by 2022. We now have six biosimilars in our short-term new product pipeline, and this will have a positive impact on both the company's future and patient access to these important medicines. The JAMP Pharma Group continues to be driven by our mission to offer more affordable options to Canadian patients."

- Louis Pilon, CEO of JAMP Pharma Group

Important news for the health sector in Canada
This partnership agreement will accelerate JAMP's unprecedented growth, reinforce its leadership position in the Canadian pharmaceutical industry and reaffirm its commitment to improving access to affordable medicines both for patients and the company's Canadian partners.

In concrete terms, the partnership allows for the creation of several new jobs and the expansion of the company's head office and laboratories in Boucherville.

"We are very excited to become a major biosimilar company in the Canadian market and look forward to collaborating with all stakeholders to make these new options available to Canadian patients as soon as possible. While the penetration rate of biosimilars remains very low, we are encouraged by the decision by officials in British Columbia and Alberta to transition all existing patients to one of the 18 biosimilars available in Canada."

- Bruno Mäder, Managing Director of Orimed Pharma and Head of Biosimilars for JAMP Pharma Group

A strategic partner of choice
Alvotech is a fully integrated specialty biopharmaceutical company focused exclusively on developing and manufacturing high-quality biosimilar medicines in their new state-of-the-art facility in Reykjavik, Iceland. Alvotech's pipeline includes biosimilar product candidates aimed at treating autoimmune, oncological and inflammatory conditions. The strategic partnership with JAMP Pharma Group extends Alvotech's fully integrated value chain from cell line development to commercial manufacturing. JAMP Pharma Group's existing commercial infrastructure and expertise will allow Canadian patients to benefit from safe and effective biosimilars as well as the JAMP Care^TM patient support program, while providing significant cost savings to the healthcare system.

"Alvotech is proud to join forces with JAMP Pharma Group, a leading pharmaceutical company in Canada. We believe that our portfolio breadth and fully integrated development model will allow us to become a worldwide leader in this market."

- Anil Okay, Executive VP, Business Development for Alvotech

About JAMP Pharma Group

JAMP Pharma Group is a privately owned Canadian company headquartered in the Montréal area. Having sustained its phenomenal growth for more than 10 years, JAMP Pharma Group has a portfolio of more than 250 molecules and is the leader in product launches in the generic pharmaceutical industry in Canada based on Health Canada approvals from January to December 2019. The Group also has in excess of 160 products in its over-the-counter division with a diverse range of vitamin, supplement and natural product brands, as well as Orimed Pharma's prescription products.

Biosimilar medicines in Canada

A biosimilar is a biologic drug that is highly similar to a reference biologic drug already authorized for sale and no longer protected by a patent. Health Canada regulates biosimilars as new drugs under the Food and Drugs Act and Food and Drug Regulations. Biosimilars are approved for sale based on the same rigorous regulatory standards for quality, efficacy and safety as all other biologic drugs.

Biosimilars are not the same as generic drugs. Generic drugs are small, chemically synthesized molecules containing medicinal ingredients identical to their reference products. A biosimilar and its reference biologic drug can be shown to be highly similar, but not identical. This is because biologic drugs are often large and complex molecules and made from living cells rather than chemicals. As a result, they are naturally variable.

SOURCE JAMP Pharma Corporation