Top Trends in Pharmaceutical Sustainability for 2025

Sustainability is becoming a growing focus in the pharmaceutical industry, highlighted by initiatives emerging from UN Climate Change Conferences. With the global pharmaceutical sector producing 55% more greenhouse gas emissions than the automotive industry, it is crucial to tackle these environmental challenges. The industry must prioritise innovative solutions to reduce its carbon footprint and build a greener, cleaner future.

Below, we explore the top predicted trends for sustainability in the pharmaceutical industry in 2025.

1. Carbon neutrality and net zero goals

One of the primary aims of the Paris COP agreement is to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. Many pharmaceutical companies are making significant progress in addressing scope 1 and scope 2 emissions, which include the direct and indirect production of greenhouse gas emissions from operations. However, 80% of emissions by the industry stem from scope 3, which are those that come indirectly from supply chains, such as raw material extraction, transport, and product disposal. According to The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), companies are now assessing their entire life cycle of medicine manufacturing to tackle scope 3 emissions. 

Many companies, such as Merck, aim to achieve carbon neutrality for Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 2025 through sustainable building standards, transitioning from fossil fuels, and using high-quality carbon offsets.  Roche and Novo Nordisk already operate on 100% renewable energy, setting a high bar for the industry. Moreover, seven global companies, including AstraZeneca, GSK, Merck KGaA, Novo Nordisk, Roche, Samsung Biologics and Sanofi announced a joint action to reach emission reduction targets and accelerate net zero health systems. By switching to renewable power, green heat solutions, and communicating with various stakeholders including health policy makers and regulators, they have committed to a common framework to reduce greenhouse gases in phase 2 and 3 clinical trials. Despite these goals, further changes are required such as improving supply chain visibility and collaboration with external stakeholders to reduce scope 3 emissions. 

2. Water Stewardship

Pharmaceutical manufacturing is often water-intensive, but studies show significant opportunities for optimization through solvent recovery, cooling systems, and advanced cleaning operations. Emerging technologies such as reverse osmosis and membrane filtration are gaining popularity due to their ability to both purify and reuse wastewater efficiently. 

Sanofi has implemented water recycling systems, including rainwater harvesting and optimised cooling systems, which helped reduce its global water withdrawals by 18% in 2023, surpassing its 2030 target of a 15% reduction. Similarly, Novartis uses reverse osmosis units in Singapore to recycle water, highlighting the growing adoption of innovative solutions. Some studies suggest these technologies can potentially reduce water consumption by up to 50% in certain manufacturing facilities. However, scaling these efforts across the industry remains a challenge.

3. Using AI for sustainability 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing an increasingly prominent role in enhancing sustainability. By capturing real-time data and creating predictive models, AI can optimize energy systems, potentially reducing energy consumption by up to 20% in manufacturing facilities. Companies including Merck have introduced AI tools such as myGPT Suite,  an AI digital assistant to aid employees' daily tasks. Similarly, Johnson & Johnson Vision has introduced an AI virtual assistant to provide guidance and resolve queries to consumers interested in wearing contact lenses. 

While AI can help improve sustainability goals, it relies on immense amounts of electricity and water, further accelerating the emission of greenhouse gases and water scarcity. Additionally, AI systems rely on minerals like cobalt and lithium which have unsustainable and sometimes unethical extraction methods. Hence, the environmental footprint of AI needs to be considered, and whether the benefits outweigh the environmental costs. 

4. Focusing on a circular economy

A circular economy focuses on reducing waste by reusing and recycling resources, minimizing waste, and decreasing our dependence on the use of finite resources. Pharmaceutical companies are adopting Lean manufacturing principles, integrating technologies like AI, digital twins, and IoT to improve productivity and reduce waste. By adopting circular solutions, companies aim to achieve goals such as decarbonising supply chains and developing resource efficient packaging. While progress is being made, it remains complex to implement circular principles across the entire value chain. 

5. Green Chemistry

Green chemistry, or sustainable chemistry, involves designing products and processes that reduce or eliminate hazardous substances that cause harm to the environment. Green chemistry procedures include harnessing AI and machine learning for predicting and optimising chemical reactions to become more sustainable, increasing efficiency in late-stage molecule modification, and innovating sustainable catalysts. These procedures are becoming more adopted by companies, as they allow the streamlining of manufacturing processes with reduced environmental impacts and greater efficiency. 

Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer have adopted green chemistry processes for developing drugs, in solvents for research, and in manufacturing.  Studies have shown that the application of green chemistry has been linked to a 19% reduction in waste and 56% improvement in productivity in comparison to past production standards. However, challenges include scaling and overcoming both technological and financial barriers.

6. Environmentally friendly packaging

Packaging waste, especially single-use plastics, is a significant problem in the pharmaceutical industry, with laboratories sending more than 5.5 million tons of plastics to landfills annually. In the UK, medicines account for 25% of the total NHS carbon footprint. Hence, pharmaceutical companies are shifting towards biodegradable and reusable packaging materials, including bio-based packaging such as sugarcane-derived PET to create pill boxes and silica-based containers for protecting sensitive medications. There is also a push to reduce the number of layers used and enhance package design to use limited materials whilst ensuring the safety of the product. 

Companies like Pfizer and GSK have adopted paper-based packaging solutions to address sustainability issues. Others are also exploring the use of 3D-printed packaging as an innovative solution, offering waste reduction and enhanced design flexibility.  Smart packaging solutions, such as sensor-enabled bottles that track doses and connect with mobile apps, are also emerging. To reduce the reliance of single-use plastics and therefore reduce energy usage, water consumption, and carbon emissions, the industry must reduce its usage and swap to alternatives and focus on becoming more circular. This widespread adoption will depend on regulations and investment in R&D of new materials and alternatives. 

7. Minimising waste

Many companies have manufacturing facilities that produce large amounts of waste. However, by minimising factory waste via adopting digital Lean principles, companies such as Cipla achieved a 28% decrease in carbon. Moving towards paperless quality solutions in quality control can significantly reduce the environmental impacts of paper-based processes, which are carbon-intensive, water-heavy, and cause habitat destruction. Furthermore, companies have started to convert waste into commodities. By changing the processes in which these are presented for disposal before collection, waste disposal could be turned into a revenue stream, further contributing towards circularity.  

8. Enhancing sustainability in supply chains

Pharmaceutical supply chains are energy-intensive and contribute significantly to carbon emissions. Balancing cost efficiency with sustainable practices remains a challenge, as initial investments in energy-efficient equipment can be high. However, these investments often lead to significant long-term savings. Strategies such as sourcing raw materials locally, using electric vehicles for transportation, and partnering with certified green energy providers are helping reduce environmental impact. Additionally, advanced tracking systems allow companies to monitor waste and resource usage effectively and identify areas for improvement.

Conclusions

As the pharmaceutical industry continues to evolve, these trends demonstrate a clear path towards a more sustainable future. However, the industry still faces significant challenges and has a long road ahead to achieve its sustainability goals.  The pharmaceutical sector accounts for 4.4% of the world’s emissions and its footprint is predicted to triple by 2050 if urgent action is not taken, according to the world economic forum. 

Although companies such as Merck, Pfizer, STADA, Roche, and Novo Nordisk are all seen as leaders in sustainability, the whole industry faces problems including a lack of visibility into operations, challenges in balancing quality standards with sustainability goals, and being short-term oriented. To overcome these problems that are associated with unsustainable practices, companies require long-term organising and planning of sustainable strategies, collaborating with governments, institutions, and partners, and leveraging emerging technologies and investing in scientific innovation to drive change.