Sustainable solutions

We are continuously innovating to offer customers the most sustainable solutions, without compromising on the safety and quality of our products. By applying life cycle thinking to existing products, we are proactively steering our product portfolios towards improved sustainability outcomes. Our responsibility stretches to the whole life cycle, from sourcing, transportation, manufacturing, through to customer use and end of life. Here are some examples of initiatives we focus on in our journey towards a sustainable product portfolio.

Sustainability through optimal patient outcomes

Mölnlycke’s ‘Leading solutions’ are products that offer significant¹ sustainability benefits over our standard² alternatives in the market, while providing the same or better functionality.

The sustainability benefits of Mölnlycke’s ‘Sustainable solutions’ can include environmental, resource use related, as well as social considerations. Examples of these sustainable approaches include:

• Lower GHG emissions
• More efficient use of natural resources, including the adoption of biobased material and improved energy efficiency
• Producing lower amount of waste, recycling measures and improved waste management
• Moving toward less packaging
• Improved inclusivity in the workforce as an engaged, diverse company where all employees can perform at their best and support others
• Improved health and wellbeing, both for our employees and for society as a whole, in line with UN SDG #3, which calls for good health and wellbeing. Mölnlycke aims to free patients, caregivers and healthcare systems from the burden of wounds and Healthcare Associated Infections (HAIs)

We also assess that a given ‘Sustainable solution’ does not have adverse effects on any other criteria².

Sustainable Product Portfolio Assessment

Our responsibility includes the entire life cycle, from sourcing, transportation, manufacturing through to customer use and end of life. We assess the sustainability performance of all products and build sustainability thinking into our innovation process through sustainable design insights and eco-design tools. 

The SPPA work is based on individual Life Cycle Assessments o four solutions based on ISO standards 14040/44, the internationally established and recognised frameworks that specify requirements and provide guidelines for Life Cycle Assessment. In 2022 we carried out full Life Cycle Assessments for products including Biogel^® surgical natural latex gloves, Biogel PI gloves and Mayo Stand Cover, accounting for 9.5% of the portfolio in terms of net sales.

Also in 2022, we piloted a holistic approach, carrying out a full analysis of all sustainability and product safety risks and opportunities for selected product portfolios in our Operating Room Solutions Business Area. Information from the pilot is being used to support product portfolio planning through our marketing and innovation teams.

Innovating with renewable raw materials and components

In recent years we have introduced product innovations which are focused on ISCC-certified biobased and other renewable materials or components. Examples include Mölnlycke’s range of drapes, ProcedurePak^® solutions and natural latex gloves.

Thus, we have introduced a number of ISCC (International Sustainability and Carbon Certification) accredited sets of universal drapes that use renewable, bio-based raw materials. One of the three layers that make up the drapes is made of ISCC-certified renewable, biobased raw materials. As a result, an externally reviewed Life Cycle Assessment³ showed these drapes to generate on average 20% less greenhouse gas emissions than traditional products.

While ProcedurePak^® clearly contributes to reducing the risk of contamination⁴, with fewer pieces to unpack, it also contributes to improving efficiency in hospitals by reducing the theatre set up time by up to 40%⁵ and so freeing up staff to support elsewhere. It can also reduce waste, helping hospitals to reach their sustainability targets⁶ and bring efficiency to purchasing teams, with up to 54% less time spent on invoicing¹.

We have further improved the sustainability profile of our trays by introducing to the market a series of components, such as a PVC-free diathermia pencil, PVC-free hand activated L hook, and the MIS organiser made of FSC certified virgin pulp as well as a needle counter and tray organiser in biobased materials.

Read about our ISCC certified BARRIER^® Universal drape

Read about our ProcedurePak solutions

Guiding customers to make sustainable decisions

To guide customers in their conversion to more sustainable solutions, we have developed a CO₂ calculator digital tool which straightforwardly calculates the environmental benefits of choosing an ISCC drape over our standard product¹. The calculator allows the customers to easily view the impact of replacing their existing products with sustainable ISCC-certified drapes, based on their annual consumption of drapes. The result is reported both as a percentage reduction of CO₂eq. emissions and as the actual reduction in kg CO₂eq.

Packaging

Packaging has an important role to play by extending the lifespan of Mölnlycke’s solutions and protecting them from external factors such as damage during transport and handling, or deterioration caused by contamination. This reduces the need for additional raw materials and resources in products and helps to minimise waste for customers.

However, packaging also presents some challenges. It uses valuable resources in manufacturing and generates waste when not recycled – an increasing focus of governments and regulators around the world.

As part of our resource efficiency journey, we have set a target that more than >95% of packaging to be recyclable and >80% of all packaging to be made of recycled (PCR1) and/or renewable material by 2030. These targets are based on total packaging weights and 2023 product scope⁸. For 2023, 90% of the packaging material was recyclable and 75% of all packaging made of recycled (PCR) and/or renewable material.

The majority of our primary packaging is made of mixed plastic or composite materials. This presents recyclability challenges considering currently available end-of-life infrastructures. We are developing solutions to these issues. In the Antiseptics product assortment, all bottles and ampules are made of 100% recyclable mono-material plastic. We will continue to work with suppliers, recyclers and other partners to increase recyclability for plastic primary packaging in other business areas, as well as optimising their weight and recycled content.

We aim to reduce waste from production and increase efficiency in the use of raw materials. Our ambition to decouple growth from increasing material use goes beyond recycling. It starts with limiting the need to recycle. Therefore, we focus on zero waste, working to the ‘right first time’ principle and repurposing and reclaiming materials. We are on a journey to become a zero-waste company in material waste⁹. This includes ambitious targets of zero waste to landfill and reusing water at the most water intensive sites by 2030, as well as implementing closed water loop systems in all production environments.