Fujifilm Biotechnology’s system of setting up similar manufacturing facilities across the globe —termed the ‘KojoX’ approach — has allowed the contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) and its partners to remain agile despite international tensions, such as trade tariffs threatening global supply lines.
Speaking to Pharmaceutical Technology ahead of the 2026 J.P. Morgan Healthcare conference held in San Francisco, from 12 to 15 January, CEO Lars Petersen outlined the CDMO’s modular strategy of establishing near-identical sites in different regions. Though the strategy predates US President Donald Trump’s tariffs announced last year, Petersen notes it has proven an effective adaptation to the effects of recent trade tensions within pharma.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The broader industry of biopharma manufacturing has long relied on facilities spread across several regions, an approach Petersen said Covid-era supply disruptions and more recent US import tariffs have reaffirmed. By copying the structures and practices of its factory in Hillerød, Denmark, to others throughout the US, UK, and Japan, he said Fujifilm allows its partners to shift operations around the world seamlessly in response to shifting international trends.
Its parent company, Fujifilm Holdings, built a new site in Holly Springs, North Carolina, central to its presentation at J.P. Morgan on 13 January. Opened in September 2025, the Holly Springs site is a near-replica of Fujifilm’s Hillerød site with a 320,000 litre capacity, 75% of which has been occupied in large part through 10-year deals with Johnson & Johnson and Regeneron worth $2bn and $3bn, respectively.
Fujifilm sees 2026 as the year to prove the potential of KojoX, according to Petersen. Offering the same capabilities and processes across three continents means the company can establish high trust with customers, he added, with confidence in new sites supported by the track record of their similarly built predecessors.
Petersen said the CDMO doesn’t currently have plans for additional US facilities, despite a number of high profile deals between big pharma developers and the White House to localise manufacturing in the country, but he added that there is the possibility of expanding sites in North Carolina and College Station, Texas. He also stated Fujifilm is not considering sites in China despite its ascendant status in the sector, a decision driven at least in part by the wishes of customers.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataOverall, Fujifilm laid out a positive future vision in its session at J.P Morgan. 2026 revenues for its healthcare and life sciences division were projected to reach ¥1.2trn ($7.6bn) from ¥1.1trn ($6.9bn) in 2025. In the next year, the company expects to expand the capabilities of its existing large-scale Danish and US sites, and to open new, smaller-scale facilities in Japan and the UK.
Sign up here to receive daily updates on the latest healthcare industry trends emerging from the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference 2026. Sign up here to receive a comprehensive report after the conference.
