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A new spreadsheet-based tool to enable pharma companies to estimate the carbon footprint of tablet medicines in blister packs has been unveiled.
The tool, a first of its kind for the pharmaceutical sector, was developed in collaboration with the Carbon Trust and funded by industry body the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) together with pharma giants AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen-(J&J), Eli Lilly, and Pfizer.
The tool will help companies estimate the carbon footprint of tablet medicines in blister packs in a way that the Carbon Trust says is “relatively quick and easy”. A range of data has been incorporated into the model which covers carbon emissions for active pharmaceutical ingredients, transport and distribution, formulation and packaging, retail and use phase and finally the disposal of the packaging.
Sonia Roschnik, head of the NHS Sustainable Development Unit, commented: “[The tool] adds real value to the body of evidence emerging around the carbon footprinting of pharmaceutical products which account for approximately 20% of the NHS carbon footprint. This tool should be useful to manufacturers, commissioners and providers to start highlighting carbon hotspots and to target work to reduce emissions further.”
You can download the tool here.
Picture credit: © Falko Matte | Dreamstime Stock Photos
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