Bayer invests 250 million Euros in new production facility in Finland to accelerate global access to modern contraception

Berlin, September 21, 2023 – Today, Bayer announced the opening of a new production facility in Turku, Finland, to secure long-term supply of long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs). The 250 million Euro investment to increase the production capacity of implants and hormonal intrauterine systems (IUS) plays a crucial role in driving Bayer’s global sustainability goal to help provide 100 million women in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) with access to modern contraception by 2030.

The new facility will utilize automation, robotics, and digital technologies to enable significant advances, which will create efficiencies in operations and enable increased capacities. Alongside the facility in Turku, Bayer is building a new state-of-the-art production facility, specialized in the production and supply of LARCs in Alajuela, Costa Rica. Both projects are part of Bayer’s overall investment of over 400 million Euros to support women’s choice in and access to contraception across the world. The production facility project in Costa Rica is on track as planned; teams from both sites are collaborating in order to supply long-acting reversible contraceptives to meet Bayer’s sustainability goal.

“Our significant investments in production capacities demonstrate our continuous commitment to drive access to medicine across the world”, said Holger Weintritt, Member of the Executive Leadership Team and Head of Product Supply for the Pharmaceuticals Division of Bayer AG. “At Bayer, we have a long history in supporting family planning programs. We strongly believe that providing girls and women with access to modern contraception plays an essential role in fostering gender equality, improving health and well-being of communities, and achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.”

Despite all global efforts and progress made in family planning, the number of unintended pregnancies worldwide remains high, at 121 million per year (331,000 per day). The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) views these unintended pregnancies as a global failure to uphold a basic human right: the choice of whether to become pregnant.

“This is a global crisis. The international community promised it would make universal access to modern contraception a reality for everyone by 2030, but there are still over 250 million women for whom this is not possible. We must urgently speed up our efforts to transform the lives of women and girls, and we must do it by working together”, said Mariarosa Cutillo, Chief of UNFPA’s Strategic Partnerships Branch. “Public-private partnerships, such as the one between UNFPA and Bayer, are crucial to help us reach our goal. Everyone should be able to choose whether, when, and with whom they become pregnant.”

In addition to the production, Bayer is involved in a range of key activities that support girls and women in LMICs. These include partnerships with organizations such as UNFPA, various digital initiatives, and awareness campaigns like Your Life with its annual World Contraception Day. The World Contraception Day, marked on September 26th every year, works towards a world where every pregnancy is wanted and raises awareness among adolescents and youth regarding sexual and reproductive health.

About World Contraception Day
The World Contraception Day (WCD) taking place every year on September 26th raises special awareness among adolescents and youth regarding sexual and reproductive health. Providing young people access to scientifically accurate and non-judgmental information about a range of contraceptive methods, their pros and cons, and related sexual health topics encourages them to take control over their reproductive and sexual lives and helps them make informed choices.

Since its global launch in 2007, there are over a dozen international partners supporting WCD, with Bayer being there from the early start. The partners are dedicated to increasing access to and availability of family planning services and education. They have united to create and enhance awareness and to underline the importance of empowering young people to learn about sexual and reproductive health as well as to talk boldly about it with their healthcare providers and partners. Together, the partners are calling on governments and decision-makers, encouraging them to also promote the subject at the political level. For more information, go to the Your Life website.

About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are designed to help people and the planet thrive by supporting efforts to master the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. Bayer is committed to driving sustainable development and generating a positive impact with its businesses. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. The Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2022, the Group employed around 101,000 people and had sales of 50.7 billion euros. R&D expenses before special items amounted to 6.2 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.

Find more information at https://pharma.bayer.com
Follow us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bayer
Follow us on Twitter: @BayerPharma

Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer’s public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.