Green labs: creating a culture of sustainable science

From the lab to the patient, we are embedding sustainability across our value chain, challenging ourselves to pioneer innovative approaches and processes which minimise our impact on the planet. By creating a culture of sustainability, and changing mindsets, we’re focused on designing, developing, and delivering new medicines in the most environmentally sustainable way possible.

Scientific innovation and environmental responsibility go hand in hand

The healthcare sector is responsible for approximately 5% of all global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions with laboratories found to consume 5-10 times more energy than typical office spaces.¹ As a company whose aspiration is to lead in sustainable healthcare delivery, we have a responsibility to address the climate crisis directly. By making long-term and lasting changes, we aim to minimise the environmental footprint of our lab operations, contributing to our Ambition Zero Carbon strategy to decarbonise our operations and value chain to become net zero by 2045.

Driving sustainability requires a change in mindset

Through our Green Labs programme, we are engaging scientists in environmental sustainability across the organisation – from colleagues in Research, Development, and Technology labs to teams in Quality Control labs across our manufacturing and supply network. With more than 4,500 scientists optimising ways of working, we are changing our culture. For example, we are taking action on:

• Energy reduction: Engaging in the International Freezer Challenge and Switch Off Optimisation Program (SWOOP) to reduce our power consumption and carbon footprint.
• Waste management: Adopting more environmentally friendly waste disposal methods and promoting the recycling of lab materials such as plastics and gloves, reducing our waste output.
• Certification: In collaboration with My Green Lab (MGL), aiming for certification across our organisation, to understand our sustainability performance within the lab space and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Innovation in laboratory processes: Reducing raw materials and solvent usage.
• Ethical sourcing: Transitioning endotoxin testing to synthetic alternatives to address dependency on horseshoe crabs, improve resilience, and reduce crab-derived lysate use.

Pioneers in My Green Lab certification

Recognised by the United Nations Race to Zero campaign as a key measure of progress towards a low carbon future, the My Green Lab Certification is considered the worldwide standard for laboratory sustainability.

In 2024, we became the first organisation globally to achieve My Green Lab 2.0 certification, and in 2025, the first to certify labs at the highest Green level across every operational site – by the end of 2025, we had certified 104 labs, 97 at Green, spanning over 16 countries worldwide.

Our groundbreaking work across 33 manufacturing and supply sites has enabled us to achieve the highest level of certification, setting the industry standard with 97% average engagement.

Collective action

As a My Green Lab sponsor, we’re collaborating across our company, with our partners, and beyond, to support the future of sustainable science.

We are also a founding sponsor of the My Green Lab Converge initiative, reflecting organisation‑wide engagement in advancing sustainable laboratory practices. Converge brings pharmaceutical companies together with suppliers to support the adoption of shared sustainability standards across the value chain, helping scale the principles of My Green Lab Certification beyond our own operations.

Every change matters. By adopting a sustainability mindset – managing energy, water, waste and chemicals across our laboratories – our lab-based colleagues are driving positive change.