Novo Nordisk Sets Zero Emissions Target
30 April 2019 - 10:30PM
Dow Jones News
By Dieter Holger
Novo Nordisk A/S (NOVO-B.KO) said Tuesday that it would reach
zero carbon-dioxide emissions in its operations and transport by
2030, marking the latest push by a drug company to curtail the
environmental footprint of the pharmaceutical industry.
The Danish drug company also said it was on track to meet the
pledge it made in 2015 to only use renewables to power all its drug
factories by 2020.
To meet its goal, the company has invested in a 672-acre
solar-panel site in North Carolina. It will power Novo Nordisk's
entire U.S. operations starting in early 2020.
Norvo Nordisk's efforts come as the drug industry faces scrutiny
over its environmental impact. The pharmaceutical industry's
emission intensity--or the ratio of emissions by product--is 55%
higher than the automotive sector, according to a study published
last month in the Journal of Cleaner Production, a scientific
journal focused on sustainability.
"We are working toward a day when we will be able to say that
Novo Nordisk is a company with zero environmental impact," said
Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen, president and chief executive officer at
Novo Nordisk.
All of the company's factories in Europe are powered by wind and
its offices in Denmark use renewable power. Its facility in
Tianjin, China, is also entirely powered by wind, while its factory
in Montes Claros, Brazil, runs on hydropower.
To further reduce its environmental impact, Novo Nordisk said it
will cut waste, water use and energy in the production of its
drugs. It also announced a partnership with the Ellen MacArthur
Foundation to make its products and the materials it uses
recyclable and reusable.
Write to Dieter Holger at dieter.holger@dowjones.com;
@dieterholger
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 30, 2019 08:15 ET (12:15 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO)
Historical Stock Chart
From Feb 2024 to Mar 2024
Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2023 to Mar 2024