BioPharm International: Insuring Novel Biologic Development Against Geopolitical Developments – Part 3 of 3

In the final part of this three-part interview series with Petra Dieterich and Jeffrey Mocny of Abzena, the current tariff situation in the United States and beyond is considered.

One of the major storylines of 2025 in the pharmaceutical industry was how companies and their leaders, in the United States and abroad, would respond to drastic tariff policies enacted by the administration of US President Donald Trump.

In the conclusion of a three-part interview with BioPharm International®, Petra Dieterich, PhD, senior vice-president and scientific leader, and Jeffrey Mocny, PhD, scientific lead, both of Abzena, respond to these concerns and illustrate how contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) are insuring themselves against geopolitical shifts.

“Abzena has everything in its network to be able to manufacture the whole molecule, so each part of the molecule can be manufactured in the US under the Abzena umbrella,” Dieterich says. “Of course, we go outside of the US to buy in, you know, starting materials, building blocks, they come from Asia. But you know, if push came to shove, we would be able to manufacture them.”

Dieterich and Mocny both make the point that if certain processes are established and run efficiently by a CDMO, that company should be able to withstand snags in the supply chain.

“[The] supply chain is like a stool,” Mocny says. “There are several legs to it. One of them is appropriate quality of material for the phase of development that a client may be in, and the requirement of the scientific needs to be supported by the material that is used in that work. So having, one, a solid supply chain with a clear picture of what is necessary to facilitate that scientific work, what those materials need to look like, is something that is a critical aspect of this.”

Click here to watch the interview