• Strengthening Yoshindo’s domestic biosimilar manufacturing footprint
• Cytiva’s modular manufacturing platform to support Yoshindo with speed, flexibility, and scale

Cytiva, a Danaher company and a leader in the life sciences industry, announced that it has signed a FlexFactory™ contract with Yoshindo, supporting the company’s plans to establish domestic biosimilar drug substances manufacturing capabilities for the Japanese market.

Yoshindo plans to begin supplying biosimilar products manufactured in Yoshindo’s own plant located in Toyama from 2028 onward, contributing to a more stable domestic supply of affordable biologic medicines in Japan. The project will enable Yoshindo to manufacture biosimilar drug substances using single‑use technologies, helping accelerate facility readiness while maintaining flexibility for future needs.

Cytiva’s FlexFactory™ solution integrates standardized, modular bioprocessing technologies designed to shorten the time from facility design to GMP production without deep prior expertise in single‑use systems. Through a process design phase completed in early 2026, Yoshindo was able to visualize its manufacturing operations and forecast key operating requirements.

The facility is expected to support monoclonal antibody biosimilar drug substances manufacturing for the Japan market. This marks a significant step forward for Yoshindo’s biopharmaceutical business, for which Yoshindo has accumulated expertise over the past decade. This investment is partially supported by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW).

“This project represents an important milestone for Yoshindo as we establish an integrated in-house manufacturing system for biosimilars, from drug substances to finished drug products,” said Kenzo Shimomura, Representative Director, Yoshindo. “We aim to build flexible manufacturing capacity that can support the stable supply of biosimilar medicines for patients in Japan.”

“By working closely with Yoshindo, we are supporting the adoption of modern manufacturing approaches that can help accelerate biosimilar readiness while strengthening domestic supply resilience,” said Nick Lines, General Manager, Cytiva Japan.

According to Fuji Keizai, Japan’s domestic biosimilar market is projected to grow from approximately ¥903 billion in 2020 to around ¥1.24 trillion by 2030, a 37.5% increase, supported by expanding use in key therapeutic areas and a policy environment in which the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) is actively promoting the use of biosimilars to support healthcare sustainability. Together, these market and policy trends point to a stable and increasingly supportive outlook for Japan’s biosimilar industry over the coming decade.