Healthcare systems around the globe face multiple challenges and reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions is one of them. Today, healthcare's climate footprint corresponds to roughly 4 percent of the global net GHG emissions. Within MedTech, purchased products and services account for a large part of the total carbon dioxide emissions. Circular design plays a key role in improving resource efficiency, contributing to achieving environmental goals.
“Designing for circularity is about creating products and solutions that maximise the value of resources, while minimising waste. This means that the products are designed to be reused, repaired, recycled and recirculated in a way that supports a circular economy where resources are kept in use for as long as possible,” says Caterina Camerani, VP Sustainability at Mölnlycke.
From cradle to grave (to cradle)
Mölnlycke is active in the transition towards a circular economy and sustainability is a strategic priority for us. We lead the way when it comes to manufacturing products in renewable materials in certain product categories. Some of our solutions are certified according to the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification System (ISCC) (see here for the exact list of solutions).
Caterina stresses the importance of the sustainability aspects being present in all parts of the value chain, with a holistic cradle-to-grave perspective. “Rather than being a stand-alone pillar, sustainability should be integrated at all levels. We contribute to reducing GHG emissions not only by improving our existing products, but also by, for example, replacing fossil materials with renewable alternatives during the manufacturing process and looking at all stages in the product's life cycle,” she says.
As of December 2024, Mölnlycke secured 100 percent renewable electricity for all existing factories and the headquarters in Gothenburg, Sweden (see here for details). We will continue to source renewable electricity through 2030, as pledged in one of the near-term targets validated by Science Based Targets initiative.
“We are also downgauging our product packaging to reduce waste and optimise resource use. When we establish a new factory, we carry out careful analyses to identify environmental and social hotspots, which allows us to minimise our impact on both the environment and people from the start,” says Caterina.
Waste management important for a closed loop
Waste management is crucial to creating a closed loop. Even when packaging is designed with lower weight and use renewable materials, it is not certain that they will be handled correctly after use. Mölnlycke’s view is that this requires healthcare professionals to have the right knowledge. It also requires initiating collaborations with waste management partners. There is a lot to be gained from this type of cross-sector partnerships.
A frictionless flow generates higher value for patients and healthcare professionals. This means, among other things, that the focus in the OR can be on patients and clinical outcomes instead of administrative or logistical tasks. Post-operative waste management is one of these tasks. Mölnlycke strives to identify the non-value adding tasks in the OR and to contribute to optimising the flow so that more time is spent on tasks that matter for clinical outcomes (access our Non-Value Report 2025 here).
To help customers monitor GHG emissions and track sustainability targets, Mölnlycke has developed a CO2 calculator tool that calculates the environmental impact of our products, making it easier for healthcare providers to take informed decisions. In the tool customers can compare how much GHG emissions are reduced by using solutions containing renewable raw materials in comparison to solutions in Mölnlycke’s assortment that has not yet incorporated renewable materials.
Digital product passport
“All information in the calculator is based on facts,” emphasises Caterina Camerani, also mentioning the growing need to offer healthcare providers holistic transparent product information, for example through digital product passports. “Through such product passports customers could easily scan a QR code to obtain all the necessary information about, for example, recycling potential and environmental impact of a given product. Mölnlycke strives to drive innovation that creates sustainable solutions in healthcare. And the vision is clear – we want to revolutionise healthcare for people and planet.”
To access the original article by Mathias Pernheim in Swedish click here.