100 years of tradition and innovation in vaccine development

From its early days as the Central Laboratory over 100 years ago to its current incarnation as Intravacc B.V., our organization has played a pivotal role in the development and manufacturing of vaccines, making significant contributions to the prevention of infectious diseases in the Netherlands and around the world.

Intravacc’s long history dates to the founding of the Dutch Bacteric Therapeutic Institute in 1894. Over the years, that organization evolved and adapted to become a world leader in vaccine innovation, development, and manufacturing.

The Dutch Bacteric Therapeutic Institute was established in 1894 as the Nederlands Vaccin Instituut" in Bilthoven, The Netherlands. Its primary focus was to produce vaccines against bacterial infections, like diphtheria and tuberculosis, that were significant public health threats during that era.

The Central Laboratory succeeded the Dutch Therapeutic Institute in 1909. Also founded in Bilthoven, The Netherlands, it had a broader mandate in bacterial research and vaccine development to combat infectious diseases of the time.

The Central Laboratory underwent a name change in 1934 and became the National Institute for Public Health (Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid). The institute continued its work in healthcare research, diagnostics, and vaccine development.

In 2003, the focus of the organization was narrowed to vaccine-related activities. With that new mission came a new name: the Netherlands Vaccine Institute (Nederlands Vaccin Instituut) or NVI. The NVI played a national role in vaccine production and development.

As part of a broad government privatization initiative, the NVI was privatized, and the vaccine production facilities were transformed into an autonomous company named Bilthoven Biologics B.V. The research arm of the NVI, including the Animal Research Center (ARC), became a vaccine research institute named Intravacc under the Ministry of Health. The transition into a research institute was a significant milestone in our organization history, though the new institute’s mandate was still vaccine research, process development, and platform optimization. The ARC was acquired by the Poonawalla Science Park in 2019.

While Intravacc has existed as a research institute since 2013, it became a state-owned holding company in 2021. Intravacc B.V. has continued the long tradition and steadfast mission to innovate and advance vaccine research, development, and production.