Milestone in Transforming YpsoMate Autoinjector Into a Zero-Carbon Emission Device Platform
Ypsomed's NetZero Program is a greenhouse gas emissions reduction roadmap aiming for net zero emissions across the entire value chain by 2040. Through NetZero products, CO2 footprint is minimised by using renewable materials, optimising packaging, and establishing sustainable operating procedures. The program includes a mass balance approach and offsetting of remaining carbon emissions. All three manufacturing sites are certified by ISCC, and the first YpsoMate NetZero product was delivered in autumn 2023.
The first customised YpsoMate from the NetZero Program belongs to the 1 mL autoinjector family and is manufactured with certain plastics from renewable sources (ISCC PLUS -certified material).
The customer not only receives autoinjectors with an improved carbon footprint but also a certificate, the Sustainability Declaration, stating that the devices have been produced with a calculated percentage of this sustainable ISCC PLUS-certified material. Remaining emissions are compensated with carbon offset certificates. Ypsomed is now ready to upgrade further YpsoMate customer variants to YpsoMate in NetZero Program. In addition to the YpsoMate 1 mL, the 2.25 mL variant is already available as part of the NetZero Program and the UnoPen will come onstream in 2024.
Ypsomed’s commitment to sustainability is an integral part of the corporate strategy. We commit ourselves to the science-based emissions reduction targets according to the Science Based Targets initiative, SBTi. One of its climate targets is to reduce the total carbon footprint of the YpsoMate autoinjectors to a net zero carbon emission platform. The use of sustainable materials, especially CO2 reduced plastics, play an important role in this reduction. Most of its suppliers provide ISCC PLUS-certified materials used for the production of devices. Sustainable and fossil-based plastics are combined during manufacturing and only accounted for separately with a so called mass balance approach (see Figure 1). There are no compromises regarding safety and performance of the product – our ISCC PLUS-certified devices fulfill all regulatory and technical requirements.
Our commitment regarding new products under development goes even further. We strive for a minimal environmental impact throughout the product life cycle without compromising quality or functionality. Since 2021, we adhere to ecodesign principles for the development of new products and ensure that environmental considerations are integrated into every stage of product development.
Mass balance approach
Mass balance means that sustainable and fossil feedstocks are fed into the same production line, resulting in products that are chemically identical. The mass balance approach allows the tracking of the amount and characteristics of sustainable material in the value chain and to attribute them to specific outgoing material based on verifiable bookkeeping. The bookkeeping must ensure that volumes of outgoing material declared as sustainable do not exceed the volumes of sustainable incoming material. The correctness of this mass balance approach is externally verified by a Certification Body of the ISCC organization.
ISCC PLUS
ISCC (“International Sustainability & Carbon Certification”) PLUS is a well-recognised sustainability certification scheme covering the entire supply chain and all kinds of bio-based feedstocks and renewables. ISCC PLUS ensures correctness of the mass balance approach throughout the whole value chain. It provides traceability along the supply chain and verifies that companies meet environmental and social standards.
The production site in Burgdorf (Lochbachstrasse) was successfully ISCC PLUS-certified in 2022, followed by the sites in Solothurn and Schwerin (Germany) in 2023. Ypsomed is therefore allowed to purchase and sell ISCC PLUS-certified material.
Authors
Yvonne Hauser
Yvonne Hauser has been with Ypsomed Delivery Systems as a Product Manager for more than four years. In this role, she also manages the product care side of the YpsoMate 1 mL in NetZero program. She originally comes from the fast moving consumer goods food industry, where she worked in similar positions for over 15 years.
Olivier Blanchard
Olivier Blanchard has been with Ypsomed Delivery Systems Regulatory Affairs for more than four years. He is also member of Ypsomed’s Sustainability Board and acts as ISCC-PLUS coordinator. He holds a PhD in Biomedical Sciences from the University of Bern and has working experience from scientific laboratories and commercial positions.
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