PHARMECO addresses the urgent need for more sustainable pharmaceutical manufacturing in Europe, where the healthcare sector accounts for an estimated 3 to 8% of global CO2 emissions. It leverages the Safe and Sustainable by Design (SSbD) framework, a proactive approach promoted by EU initiatives that -while not yet legally mandated- is emerging as best practice and a source of competitive advantage. PHARMECO bridges the gap between high-level SSbD principles and the practical challenges of more sustainable chemical synthesis, biomanufacturing, and decontamination.
PHARMECO’s overarching objective is to accelerate the adoption of SSbD-compliant processes across pharmaceutical manufacturing. To achieve this, PHARMECO aims to embed SSbD principles into early-stage process design, ensuring that manufacturing safety, environmental impact, economic feasibility, quality impact and scalability guide decisions from the very beginning. Technological innovations under development include solvent-free and aqueous chemical synthesis, intensified and continuous processing platforms, advanced biomanufacturing systems with real-time monitoring and control, and low-emission decontamination technologies. These solutions are selected for their potential to reduce solvent use, energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, hazardous substances, and overall environmental impact. Complementing these efforts, PHARMECO is establishing harmonized Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodologies, environmental metrics, and sustainability indicators to enable evidence-based decision-making, regulatory alignment, and comparability across the pharmaceutical supply chain. A modular, publicly accessible digital decision-support tool will integrate sustainability evaluation, process simulation, and scenario analysis, guiding chemists and engineers toward safe, high-quality, and environmentally responsible manufacturing choices.
A core element of PHARMECO’s strategy is translating more sustainable laboratory-scale innovations into industrially relevant demonstrations. The project will scale up intensified, aqueous, and solvent-free chemical processes; continuous, digitally controlled biomanufacturing operations; and low-emission cleaning and decontamination processes. These demonstrations aim to validate technical feasibility, robustness, and scalability while quantifying environmental benefits such as reduced greenhouse gas emissions, lower energy demand, and improved material efficiency. This ensures that SSbD-driven process intensification moves beyond concept to real-world industrial application.
PHARMECO’s pathway to impact combines technological development, methodological harmonization, and proactive stakeholder engagement. Standardized sustainability assessments will support regulatory compliance, enable cross-industry comparability, and will provide a foundation for integration into future European environmental guidelines. Collaboration with regulatory authorities, the European Commission, industrial consortia, and academic partners will ensure alignment with evolving policies, emerging needs and technological developments, while also facilitating acceptance of new manufacturing approaches, and strengthening knowledge exchange. Through open-access webinars, publications, and educational initiatives, PHARMECO equips current and future scientists with the skills to implement SSbD principles and sustainable manufacturing strategies.
PHARMECO is supported by the Innovative Health Initiative Joint Undertaking (IHI JU) under grant agreement nr. 101165889. The JU receives support from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation programme and COCIR, EFPIA, Europa Bio, MedTech Europe, and Vaccines Europe.
