Future-Proofing Pharma and Personal Care: How Life Cycle Assessments and Carbon Footprinting Drive Real Change
Already in the 1980s and 1990s, environmental labelling programs emerged as a way to guide consumers toward greener choices. These third-party “seal-of-approval” systems—like the European Communities Eco-labelling Program (Regulation (EC) No 66/2010 – EUR-Lex),1 the Nordic Countries program, and the national programs of Canada, France, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Singapore, New Zealand, and Japan (EPA, 1993)—relied on predefined criteria to certify products as environmentally preferable. But even then, a core challenge was clear: how do you define “green” in a way that’s both objective and comprehensive?
Fast forward to today, and the pharmaceutical industry is facing a similar challenge. As regulators, payers, and patients as well as personal care product customers demand transparency on environmental performance, we need a robust, science-based method to assess and communicate the environmental impact of our products. That method is Life Cycle Assessment (LCA).
In pharma, the use of LCA is relatively new. LCA can help us:
- Understand the carbon footprint of different formulations or delivery systems.
- Support green procurement decisions by payers and health systems.
- Future-proof our operations against evolving regulations.
LCA is a standardized methodology used to quantify the environmental impacts, including the carbon footprint of a product or service across its entire life cycle—from raw material extraction to manufacturing, distribution, use, and end-of-life (see Figure 1). It’s a powerful tool for identifying environmental hotspots, comparing alternatives, and informing sustainability strategies.
Figure 1: Conceptual Representation of a Product Lifecycle with Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) Boundaries
System Boundaries in LCA:
Blue (Gate-to-Gate): Internal processes (e.g., manufacturing to packaging)
Red (Cradle-to-Gate): From raw materials to factory gate
Black (Cradle-to-Grave): Full lifecycle including use and end-of-life
The idea of LCA was initiated in the 1960s in collaboration between universities and industry, when environmental degradation and limited access to resources started becoming a concern.2 Since the 1990s, LCA has become a recognized tool for environmental decision-making, with applications expanding from packaging to a wide range of products and systems. This period also saw the first international efforts to harmonize methodologies, culminating in the development of the ISO 14040 (ISO, 1997) and ISPE 140443 standards in the early 2000s.
Learning from the Past: The Limits of Labels
Since the 1980s, environmental labelling programs taught us that credibility hinges on transparency and consistency. Early programs often focused on a narrow set of criteria—like recycled content or energy use—lacking clear definition of the claims used and also missing consideration of trade-offs across the product’s life cycle. This led to enhanced focus on actions to address greenwashing and protect consumers, and the environment, for example a proposal for a Directive on Green Claims in EU (EUR-Lex - 52023PC0166 - EN - EUR-Lex) .
While the ISO standards offer comprehensive, industry-neutral guidance for conducting LCAs, they do not specify the methodological choices or data requirements needed for specific sectoral product groups. Such specific rules exist for some sectors, but not yet for pharmaceutical products. LCA practitioners in the pharmaceutical industry are left with considerable discretion leading to potentially varying environmental footprint results for the same product, depending on the methodological choices. And given that pharmaceutical products are complex, with global supply chains, it makes it even more critical to have a consistent harmonized methodology across the sector. That’s why a standardized approach to LCA for pharmaceutical products is needed—one that reflects their unique characteristics and is recognized by regulators and stakeholders alike.
The pharmaceutical industry is actively working to address this need.
Toward a Standard: PAS 2090 for Pharmaceuticals
To address this gap, a coalition of 11 pharmaceutical companies—including Takeda, Sanofi, GSK, AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk, and more—joined forces with the British Standards Institution (BSI) and the UK National Health Service (NHS) to develop PAS 2090:2025, the first publicly available specification for pharmaceutical LCAs. This standard is the result of a rigorous, multi-stakeholder process involving LCA experts, industry leaders, and public health institutions. It represents a major step forward in aligning the industry around a common methodology.
These efforts to standardize LCA methodology are not just theoretical—they are grounded in real-world applications. The following case studies from GSK and Janssen illustrate how pharmaceutical companies are already applying LCA principles to identify environmental hotspots, refine processes, and inform sustainability strategies. These examples underscore the urgency and value of harmonized approaches like PAS 2090, especially when dealing with complex supply chains and diverse product types.
Applied LCA: Insights from Small and Large Pharmaceutical Products
GSK’s cradle-to-gate LCA of a small molecule active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) revealed that solvent use was the dominant contributor to environmental impacts—accounting for up to 75% of energy use and 50% of greenhouse gas emissions. The study led to the development of a modular LCA methodology and a chemical tree database covering 125 materials, highlighting the importance of solvent recovery over incineration.4
Similarly, Janssen’s LCA of infliximab, a biologically produced API, showed that culture media—especially those containing animal-derived materials (ADMs)—were the largest drivers of environmental impact. The study found that switching to animal-free media, as done in the production of ustekinumab, could reduce resource consumption by up to 7.5 times. It also emphasized the critical role of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, which accounted for 75–80% of electricity use in the plant, and the need for high-quality, transparent data to model bioprocesses effectively. These case studies underscore the importance of supply chain transparency, data quality, and methodological rigor in pharmaceutical LCAs5 —goals that PAS 2090 is designed to achieve.
Join the Conversation
To explore these topics further, we invite you to attend our upcoming ISPE webinar, "Future-Proofing Pharma & Personal Care: How Life Cycle Assessments and Carbon Footprinting Drive Real Change” on Wednesday, 22 October, from 1100 – 1230 EST, which will bring together experts from across the pharmaceutical and sustainability landscape:
LCA Basics: Setting the Foundation for Sustainable Pharmaceutical Products
Azevedo will introduce LCA principles and their role in assessing environmental impacts throughout a product lifecycle. She’ll address the challenges of LCA modeling and emphasize the need for standardized approaches to ensure consistent sustainability reporting.
Unpacking Sustainability: LCA Insights for Personal Hygiene Products
Otunchieva will present a LCA comparing conventional and bamboo-based personal hygiene products, highlighting key challenges and sustainability opportunities. Her talk will explore how to balance healthcare needs with environmental impact.
Certification and Challenges of Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) Methodology
Gosmann will explain the methodology for certifying PCF data in line with TfS and ISO 14067 standards, focusing on Scope 1 and 2 emissions and the practical challenges of data usage.
Case Study: Life Cycle Assessment of Capsules
Sotiropoulou will present a capsule case study, highlighting the importance of accurate carbon footprint data, the complexities of LCA scope and data collection, and how LCA results can drive actionable sustainability efforts.
Question-and-Answer Session
A 10-minute interactive segment will be reserved at the end of the presentation, during which attendees can engage with speakers to help deepen their understanding of LCA.
