CordenPharma, a full-service Contract Development Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) of innovative Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), Lipid Excipients, and Drug Products, has joined the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to actively drive down global emissions across the company.
 
In line with the Paris Agreement’s aims to limit the global warming temperature increase to 1.5 °C, halve emissions before 2030 and achieve Net Zero by 2050, CordenPharma has announced that it will evaluate and submit company-wide emissions reduction targets through the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
 
The SBTi partnership independently assesses and approves companies’ targets in line with strict criteria, helping to support best practices for ambitious climate action in the private sector. The initiative is a collaboration between the Committee for Development Policy (CDP), the United Nations Global Compact, the World Resources Institute (WRI), and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
 
To join the initiative, CordenPharma has committed to evaluating and developing over the next year science-based greenhouse gas emission reduction targets aligned with the SBTi criteria. Once set, the targets will be submitted to the SBTi for validation and approval, and eventually published on the SBTi website.
 
Dr. Michael Quirmbach, CEO & president of CordenPharma, commented: “Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) is a top priority of both CordenPharma and our new private equity shareholders, Astorg. We are already working with companies such as Ecovadis on achieving the highest level of sustainability ratings for our facilities.
 
“It is our responsibility as a leading CDMO to join the Science Based Targets initiative, as it represents a powerful opportunity to demonstrate to our customers how CordenPharma contributes towards the global transformation to a low-carbon economy. We know our customers put a lot of emphasis on ESG, so they look for that in a supplier. The validation and approval from the SBTi will give them visibility into understanding our reduction targets and processes to reduce carbon footprint throughout our organization at every level.”
 
Judith Charpentier, partner, head of Healthcare Investing at Astorg commented: “At Astorg ESG is a key part of sustainable value creation in our companies. As part of its ESG agenda, CordenPharma is making today a strong commitment to reduce its carbon emissions by joining the SBTi. Astorg will fully support the company on this journey.”
 
CordenPharma is also in the process of developing an action plan involving the help of all ~3,000 employees to implement the SBTi emission reduction targets and align with a Net Zero future, while ensuring positive impacts for the global communities it serves.