Overwhelming majority of people want pharmaceutical companies to disclose the carbon footprint of their products, study reveals

London, 2nd Oct 2023 - A new study by YewMaker reveals strong public support for transparency and action on the carbon emissions of medicines.

Key Findings

• 84% of respondents want medicine manufacturers to disclose the carbon footprint of their products.
• 84% of respondents want healthcare to actively reduce the carbon emissions of medicines and to prioritise suppliers with a lower carbon footprint, if the costs are not higher.
• Medicines contribute about 25% of emissions within the NHS

The NHS has committed to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2045, making it essential to address medicine-related emissions, which account for a quarter of the NHS carbon footprint.

Looking to gauge public sentiment on medicine carbon footprints, YewMaker conducted a survey across the UK, US, Australia and France with 1,304 respondents.

The survey revealed that an overwhelming majority of people feel it is important for healthcare and medicine manufacturers and suppliers to work together to reduce carbon emissions related to medicines.

The survey also revealed that:

• 73% of respondents consider it important for doctors to have access to carbon footprint information when prescribing medicines.
• 53% of participants personally wish to receive information about the carbon footprint of the medicines they consume, reflecting a growing interest in making informed choices.

Qualitative research, including one-on-one interviews, uncovered a preference among individuals for information on medicines they could buy themselves compared with medicines prescribed for them, as they felt it could empower them to make environmentally conscious decisions.

Nazneen Rahman, CEO at YewMaker: "This research demonstrates a strong public desire for the NHS and pharmaceutical companies to measure and mitigate the carbon footprint of medicines, which account for a large proportion of NHS emissions. YewMaker is developing MCF Classifier to provide standardised carbon footprints for thousands of medicines, equipping healthcare professionals with the knowledge they need to make carbon-informed decisions about medicines."

MCF Classifier is supported by SBRI Healthcare and the Greener NHS and harnesses data science and green chemistry prediction metrics to calculate the carbon emissions per dose for over 2,000 medicines. These emissions are categorised into four MCF Ratings, facilitating comparisons and benchmarking. YewMaker is set to launch the MCF Formulary, a user-friendly web application, in early 2024, making the MCF Ratings accessible to all.

For more information about YewMaker and their initiatives, visit www.yewmaker.com.

Contact Information:

Media Relations

Email: comms@yewmaker.com

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