Sustainable Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Programme drives growth and sustainability

Eight Grand Challenge projects will develop and demonstrate novel technologies for greener, more efficient medicines manufacturing.

This programme is not just about greener practices; it’s about unlocking productivity, reducing costs, and strengthening the UK’s life sciences supply chain. By adopting cutting-edge technologies, businesses can future-proof operations, meet sustainability targets, and gain a competitive edge in global markets.

This £54 million investment, funded as part of the wider 2024 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth Investment Programme, will scale innovations to strengthen the UK’s manufacturing ecosystem and attract investment, aligning with national ambitions to lead in life sciences and advanced manufacturing as set out in the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy’s Life Sciences sector.

Grand Challenges

The Grand Challenges phase supports large-scale collaborative projects across three pillars: Circularity, Green chemistry and Productivity and resource efficiency.

Each consortium will receive up to £10 million to deliver measurable improvements.

The projects span:

Circularity

SusPack – Smart sustainable pharmaceutical packaging (National Physical Laboratory)
Advancing innovative, circular and sustainable solutions to meet low-carbon recycling and waste-reduction targets in primary and secondary pharmaceutical packaging.

Anaesthetic Recycling – Recovery and reuse of volatile anaesthetics (SageTech Medical Equipment)
Optimising and scaling up the process of capture, recovery, and remanufacture of volatile anaesthetics, responsible for approximately 4M tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents each year.

Project Alpha 10.6 – Extracting lead-212 for novel cancer treatments (UK National Nuclear Laboratory)
Exploring how to make valuable medical treatments sustainably from legacy nuclear material, unlocking the UK’s potential to develop promising new cancer therapies for patients.

Green chemistry

Biocat Copilot – AI-driven biocatalysis ecosystem (Disyn Biotec)
Delivering an integrated digital AI ecosystem that transforms biocatalysis from a niche specialty into a readily accessible, predictable, and rapidly implementable strategy for sustainable API manufacturing

Environmental Peptide Production – Low-impact peptide synthesis (Origin Peptides)
Creating a commercially ready peptide manufacturing system with novel peptide synthesis technology, to make life-saving medicines with the smallest environmental footprint and at the lowest cost.

Productivity and resource efficiency

A Sustainable Future Factory – Robotics and automation for next-gen manufacturing (AstraZeneca UK)
Integrating robotics, automation, artificial intelligence (AI), and data-driven approaches into the next generation of medicines manufacturing technologies, to create sustainable, future-ready factories.

EcoCAR – Sustainable CAR-T cell manufacturing (Royal Free Hospital)
Developing a more sustainable CAR-T cell manufacturing process that reduces waste through manufacture in a single low-volume vessel resulting in a “one-pot” CAR-T manufacturing solution.

InSPIREmed – Photonic sensing for waste and energy reduction (Fraunhofer UK Research)
Delivering and implementing advances in photonic sensing across multiple stages of medicines manufacturing to reduce waste and energy usage while increasing process yields.

These projects mark a pivotal shift in how medicines are made in the UK, aligning with the government’s Modern Industrial Strategy. By investing in sustainable innovation, we’re accelerating progress towards net zero, boosting sector resilience, and driving long-term economic growth.

– Dr Stella Peace, Managing Director and Executive Director for Healthy Living & Agriculture Domain, Innovate UK

Driving growth: Why it matters for your business

Lower costs, higher efficiency
Innovative processes reduce waste and energy use, improving margins.

Meet environmental, social & governance (ESG) goals
Align with sustainability commitments and regulatory expectations.

Access new markets
Position your business as a leader in advanced, sustainable manufacturing.

Collaborate and scale
Join our community tackling industry-wide challenges and benefit from shared expertise.

For further information please visit the Sustainable Medicines Manufacturing programme page or join our LinkedIn group.