Johnson & Johnson Invests $2 Billion into North Carolina Facility

On Aug. 21, 2025, Johnson & Johnson (J&J) announced it will be adding a more than 160,000-square-foot dedicated manufacturing facility at the FUJIFILM site in Holly Springs, NC. This will be part of a $2 billion expansion during the next 10 years to expand J&J’s manufacturing capacity in the United States. The facility will focus on the manufacture of advanced medicines. The company stated it also has plans for adding more advanced manufacturing facilities in the US and expanding current US facilities.

“Johnson & Johnson has more manufacturing facilities in the US than in any other country, and we continue to strengthen our presence here,” said Joaquin Duato, chairman and chief executive officer, Johnson & Johnson, in a press release (1). “With the recent signing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, we continue to expand our investment in the US to lead the next era of healthcare innovation.”

Part of larger US expansion

In March 2025, J&J announced the investment of $55 billion in US manufacturing, R&D, and technology over the next four years, including the following:

• Construction of a facility in Wilson, NC, that will employ more than 500 people when fully operational and create approximately 5000 construction jobs during the site development

• R&D infrastructure to develop lifesaving and life-changing treatments in areas such as oncology, neuroscience, immunology, cardiovascular disease, and robotic surgery.

“Today’s announcements accelerate our nearly 140-year legacy as an American innovation engine tackling the world’s toughest healthcare challenges,” Duato said in a press release at the time (2). “Our increased US investment begins with the ground-breaking of a high-tech facility in North Carolina that will not only add US-based jobs but manufacture cutting-edge medicines to treat patients in America and around the world.”

Actions from the White House

In early August 2025, J&J was one of the companies on the receiving end of letters sent by the Trump administration insisting prescription drug prices be lowered in the US. In what has been called a most-favored-nation price strategy, the White House has been in talks with pharmaceutical companies about ways drug pricing can be reduced (3).

The ongoing tariff situation has also been making impacts in the pharmaceutical industry.

Pharmaceutical Technology® reached out to readers to find out how the tariffs may have impacted those working in the industry. A survey found that tariff-driven costs are rising, and the supply is strained, with nearly half of respondents reporting that the tariffs will ‘significantly’ impact their operations or the supply chain (4).

Other companies making an investment in the US

J&J isn’t the only pharmaceutical company making an investment in US facilities. On Aug. 13, 2025, AbbVie announced it was expanding US API production with a $195 million investment in a manufacturing plant in North Chicago, Ill., allowing the company to deepen its chemical synthesis capabilities in the US (5).

Bora Pharmaceuticals also announced an investment in August. The company will be expanding manufacturing and packaging capability at its Maple Grove, Minn. facility (6). In July, AstraZeneca announced a $50 billion investment in manufacturing and R&D US facilities by 2030 (7). And in June 2025, Hikma Pharmaceuticals announced it was putting $1 billion into expanding generic-drug R&D and manufacturing in Ohio and New Jersey (8).

References

1. J&J. Johnson & Johnson Continues U.S. Investment with $2 Billion Commitment to Enable Manufacturing at State-Of-The-Art North Carolina Facility. Press Release. Aug. 21, 2025. https://www.jnj.com/media-center/press-releases/johnson-johnson-continues-u-s-investment-with-2-billion-commitment-to-enable-manufacturing-at-state-of-the-art-north-carolina-facility
2. J&J. Johnson & Johnson Increases US Investment to More than $55 Billion Over the Next Four Years. Press Release. March 21, 2025.
3. Lavery, P. Trump Sends Letters to 17 Leading Pharma Companies Outlining Most-Favored-Nation Drug Pricing Protocol. PharmTech.com. Aug. 1, 2025. https://www.pharmtech.com/view/trump-sends-letters-17-leading-pharma-companies-outlining-most-favored-nation-drug-pricing-protocol
4. Cole, C. Bio/Pharma’s Tariff Response: Key Insights from Industry Survey Results. PharmTech.com. Aug. 20, 2025. https://www.pharmtech.com/view/biopharma-pharmaceutical-industry-tariff-response-key-insights-from-industry-survey-results
5. AbbVie. AbbVie Announces $195 Million Investment to Expand Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient Manufacturing in the US. Press Release. Aug. 12, 2025.
6. Bora Pharmaceuticals. Bora Pharmaceuticals Announces Multi-Year Expansion for Midwest Manufacturing Site, as Upsher-Smith Entity Split is Finalized. Press Release. Aug. 5, 2025.
7. AstraZeneca. AstraZeneca Plans to Invest $50 Billion in America for Medicines Manufacturing and R&D. Press Release. July 21, 2025.
8. Hikma Pharmaceuticals. Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA Announces $1 Billion of New US Investment to Further Expand its Domestic Manufacturing and Development of Essential Generic Medicines. Press Release. June 28, 2025.