Bayer to help produce CureVac's Covid-19 vaccine

German chemicals giant Bayer has inked a deal to manufacture CureVac's Covid-19 vaccine candidate.

The new shot will help boost the European Union's potential supply of vaccines if the late-stage clinical trials already underway proved it was effective.

Although supplies of the vaccine are not expected to arrive before the end of 2021, but the appearance of new virus strains appeared to indicate that they would be needed nonetheless.

Curevac's vaccine used the same mRNA technology employed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna, who had developed the two most effective shots to date.

The collaboration between Bayer and CureVac would mark the first time that Bayer has helped to produce a vaccine.