Leaders from the Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Initiative (PSCI) and Manufacture 2030 outlined the mounting pressure on contract manufacturers to address sustainability at CDMO Live 2025, with major pharma companies now making emissions reduction a prerequisite for business relationships.

The Climate-Healthcare Connection

Rob Williams, Senior Director of Sustainable Procurement at AstraZeneca and Chair of PSCI, opened with a stark reality check about healthcare's environmental impact. "Healthcare contributes 5% of global emissions. That's actually more than aviation, which is often pointed out as being one of the poster children of the problem we're creating," Williams revealed.

The connection between climate change and healthcare is becoming increasingly clear, with WHO recognising climate impacts as a major health issue. "Whether it's increased temperatures, whether it's intensity of storms, whether it's flooding... all of those organisations recognise that as the climate is changing, it's presenting impacts on human health," Williams explained.

Martin Chilcott, CEO and founder of Manufacture 2030, added critical context: "It's not just the headline acts of malaria and cholera that we're talking about moving with temperature changes, but also it's the migration patterns... 120 million people on the move because of the unlivability of the world in which they exist."

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“Nobody knows exactly what will happen, so making yourself anxious about unknowns doesn’t help. You must be prepared for multiple scenarios, ready and flexible to react quickly when changes do occur.”

Maik Talarczyk, Director of PMO Office and Strategy in External Manufacturing Operations at Sandoz, brings extensive expertise in managing external manufacturing relationships and strategic operations for one of the world’s largest generic pharmaceutical companies, with over 20,000 employees worldwide.

In this episode recorded at CDMO Live 2025 in Rotterdam, Maik shares how Sandoz navigates tremendous complexity and uncertainty in pharmaceutical manufacturing while managing hundreds of external partners. His insights reveal a methodical approach to preparedness, partnership management, and strategic planning in an increasingly unpredictable global landscape.

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CDMO Live 2025 Highlights: How Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, and Leo Pharma are rebuilding manufacturing strategies

• Complexity Challenge: With thousands of SKUs to manage (Bayer handles 5,000+, half outsourced), companies struggle with aging portfolios and aggressive commercial expansion.
• Geopolitical Reshuffling: A staggering 62% of pharma companies are restructuring their manufacturing footprints in response to global tensions.
• Different Resilience Approaches:

- Boehringer Ingelheim (family-owned) maintains dual sourcing despite higher costs

- Leo Pharma focuses on strategic partnerships for smaller-volume products

- Bayer's "Project Martini" shifts from Euro-centric to regional production

• AI Adoption: Still early days, but promising applications in contract management, document processing, and predictive maintenance are emerging.
• Sustainability Shift: While not top priority, sustainability is increasingly viewed as both an ethical necessity and long-term cost reducer.

Bottom Line: The industry is moving from pure cost optimization to balancing affordability with resilience. As Blue Jet Healthcare's MD put it: "resilience is becoming as important as costs."

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