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The healthcare system in the United Kingdom - the National Health Service (NHS) - is a pioneer in sustainability and has set ambitious strategies for a climate-neutral healthcare system. This goal has major implications for the sales of medical devices and pharmaceuticals in the United Kingdom (UK) and is increasingly influencing NHS procurement decisions.

The online Lunch & Learn session around Greener NHS will provide an overview of NHS strategies (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland), timelines and requirements for the healthcare industry selling products in the UK. The event will be complemented by a talk from the procurement side.

In October 2020, NHS England became the world´s first health service to commit to carbon neutrality and was first to embed net zero into legislation in July 2022 through the Health and Care Act 2022.

For the wider supply chain, NHS England plans to reach net zero emissions by 2045, with a reduction of 80% between the years 2036 and 2039. This target has major implications for the supplying medtech and pharmaceutical industries.

Thus, the NHS will gradually procure only products that support its carbon neutrality targets, meaning sustainability and carbon neutrality will increasingly become NHS criteria in product purchasing decisions. Within the decade, NHS England will only purchase products from manufacturers that at least meet or exceed the Net Zero commitment.¹ NHS England's Net Zero Supplier Roadmap has already established requirements for the supplying healthcare industry as part of the procurement process.

NHS Scotland has also already published its own sustainability strategy. This strategy and opportunities for companies in a circular economy will be adressed by the talk from Wendy Rayner.

Find out more and prepare your company for the requirements in the United Kingdom! Become a pioneer too and turn the requirements into a competitive advantage.

The Lunch & Learn is part of the activities of the Economic Partnership Initiative Baden-Württemberg | United Kingdom initiated by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism Baden-Württemberg, the British Consulate General and the UK‘s Department for Business and Trade. It is jointly organised by BIOPRO Baden-Württemberg with support of the Department for Business and Trade, Scottish Development International, Welsh Government and London & Partners.

1. Podcast Getting to Net Zero: One Health System Fights Climate Change, January 22, interview with Nick Watts, Chief Sustainability Officer of NHS England https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/podcast/2022/jan/getting-to-net-zero-one-health-system-fights-climate-change