1. Many people have heard of concepts like ESG and sustainable development, but many of them do not know exactly how they work in practice - can you explain them a little through the example of Hemofarm?
We started almost as a grassroot movement. First, we focused on E – on the ecological side, as we wanted to be sure not to waste any energy. When it comes to G, it is something where Hemofarm has a long tradition. Working in the society, it is important to us, both internally and externally, to be present and proactive in support of the development of the country we are working in. The S is dedicated to people – both inside and outside our organization – and we are growing our ambition to be magnet for talents. As the TOP Employer in Serbia we have proof for that, but in the end it’s not about certification, it’s about real satisfaction of the people. We are very much listening to the needs and desires and ideas of our employees.
For Hemofarm, sustainable development was only a theory back in 2011, when we started to build our sustainable way of life. And now, 13 years later or rather 12 reports on sustainable development later, there is no doubt that all our business results are a testimony of our total commitment to sustainable development - for example, year after year we break production records, while constantly reducing resource consumption; women are the majority of employees; our packaging is made from recycled cardboard, thanks to which we saved forests that could cover the area of 350 football pitches... I think it's obvious that we live and work sustainably.
2. Hemofarm is considered one of the leaders when it comes to sustainable business. Can you explain in what ways you have introduced sustainability and environmental responsibility into the company’s operations?
It was easy because our engineers and technicians very much embraced this. The competitive, innovative, and entrepreneurial mindset of our people has helped in this a lot. We did a lot of education and communication with our people, so they do understand why it is important for us to become sustainable organization. And last but not the least, always cheering on and celebrating our Sustainability Reporting. And although it is just reporting, it cumulates all the information and data, on one hand, and while you go through it you can see how comprehensive challenge is to be up to date on ESG, but also where we are and where we are not yet. For me, big challenge starts always with little steps, and those KPI’s and Reporting are little steps. It helped us a lot externally, but reflecting from external to internal, I see a lot of our people posting on social media and cheering about what Hemofarm is doing in sustainability. The inclusion of employees is a real value that brings results in the long run.
3. You mentioned that, for example, 83 percent of Hemofarm's products in 2021 were packaged in recycled cardboard. Is there a possibility that this number will reach 100 percent?
Our ambition since we started monitoring this parameter was 100%, but it is hard to go to 100% as the industry in which we are active is subject to very strict regulations. For example, in some countries to which we export, the law does not recognize the possibility of packaging in recycled cardboard packaging. Now, I must point out again that recycled packaging represents the secondary packaging of a pharmaceutical product and that it does not in any way threaten the quality and safety of the product, which is again monitored through other strict pharmaceutical standards. This topic is not so simple, but it is important and challenging for us. Today you have packaging manufacturers who have made the process of creating boxes from non-recycled cardboard greener than those who produce recycled ones. Therefore, our aspiration is to always follow all current events on the market and to improve our packaging in the direction of greener solutions.
4. When we talk about sustainable development, what are Hemofarm's further plans in this field, what projects are you planning and what will you emphasize?
For certainly, it is carbon neutral facilities, and we are aiming towards this, but it will take time to accomplish this. We will also further work on the optimization of our portfolio in the direction of sustainable products and packaging is one of our priorities, and in accordance with the 5R approach in sustainable product development.
Digitalization is undoubtedly also one of the key directions in which we are going; imagine if every leaflet with instructions on the use of the drug was actually a QR code, how many trees and energy we would save, reduce the size of the packaging, and thus the weight, and ship fewer trucks to our partners and consumers, with a significant reduction in CO2 emissions; and then for that QR code to offer the option of interacting with a doctor or pharmacist through a mobile application... the sky is the limit.
And there is also our constant aspiration to monitor problems in society and to help reduce the pressure on the public health system through the work of our foundation; in this regard, we will continue with the campaign that promotes organ donation.
5. As one of the pioneers in sustainable business in this area, the company presented one of its most important projects in Vršac last year - STADA EXPO, a multimedia mobile platform. What is the purpose of this platform and what exactly does it represent?
Dealing with sustainable development, we realized that this topic is mostly talked about in Serbia and the world, and that there are few opportunities to experience ESG in action. With STADA EXPO project, we wanted to provide visitors with a concrete ESG experience. We created and opened STADA EXPO to bring the message of sustainability to wider audience so they can see in a more illustrative way what Hemofarm did already, what they can do and what we are planning to do. With STADA EXPO, we bring the story of sustainability from a dry to a livable thing. Let’s be fair, people don’t always read texts, but they love clear pictures and animations. And if people play with this, it’s much easier for them to put sustainability into action in their daily lives. I believe that STADA EXPO is good starting point in forming alliance of companies, because it is our obligation as we are an important part of the society, and if leaders don’t step up to take their responsibility, nothing is going to change.
6. You stated that Hemofarm "takes great care of the origin of the raw materials it uses and the degree of sustainable development of our suppliers". How important are these standards for product quality and the overall picture related to the application of sustainable development in practice?
The pharmaceutical industry is one of the most strictly regulated branches, and by nature it seeks to have high standards of quality. The responsibility of pharmaceutical manufacturers must be much greater than in other branches because we directly and indirectly affect people's health. In our industry, apart from strict rules regarding quality, there is another key control factor, and that is – pharmacovigilance. It is a legal obligation of everyone who manufactures and places pharmaceutical products on the market, and it is globally integrated into a unique monitoring system for suspected adverse drug effects. Our pharmacovigilance system constantly monitors the market and promptly responds to any doubt or information of interest to product and user safety.
7. You say you implement state-of-the-art ESG platforms for supplier evaluation - can you explain this process a bit?
Assessment of ESG performance of suppliers is nothing new and we have been doing it for years through the assessment of business-social compliance. This topic is becoming more and more important today because it is becoming a legal obligation, at least for companies that have ties to the EU (whether they market their products there or are principally from the EU). I can highlight the latest EU regulation in the field of ESG - CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive), which expect companies to know what real ESG impacts are in the supply chain.
Today STADA and Hemofarm evaluate their suppliers through the EcoVadis platform, within which ESG parameters are monitored, and during the past year around 800 suppliers have already been evaluated; the point of this system is not only to eliminate those who have not progressed far enough in their own ESG development, but to prefer those who are ESG better, and to help the others to improve their own sustainable development.
8. How do you assess the situation with sustainable development in Serbia, is progress noticeable and what aspects should still be worked on?
Serbia has excellent examples in the field of sustainable development and great companies, with which Hemofarm promotes this topic, mainly through the activities of the UN Global Compact. So, progress is noticeable in the corporate world, and it is a matter of fact now. In the small and medium enterprises we still have a way to go, and that is why it is important to have development programs for these local businesses to learn how to invest into ESG. And if they are not profitable enough or don’t have additional budget, the solution could be for a state to step in and help.
I fully trust that the young generations will much more push for sustainability, both from the employment side, which we can see, but also from the consumer side. In the end, the consumers dictate a lot, and if they don’t care about this, then we have a problem. As a society we have a lot of room for improvement and that is why Hemofarm will continue to invest and listen to people, because sustainability is not about lecturing, it’s about collaboration. To give you an example, just recently we launched our new brand One Two Three, a product line based on consumer needs. And sustainable development was very much in our minds when we created our brand, especially with active substances that are of the highest quality and enable a high degree of bioavailability and usability in the body, but also with recycled packaging. In the end, our mission is to enable all users to live healthier and more active lives.
9. Many are skeptical when it comes to ESG and sustainable development, and especially the environmental picture of the planet in the future. Are examples like Hemofarm and other large companies that operate conscientiously something that everyone should strive for in the process of creating a sustainable future and "purifying" the living environment? And can this be enough to ensure a brighter and healthier future?
The questions speak for itself – no, it is not enough. But, if not us, then nothing will come out of this. It is our duty as responsible people to work on sustainability and we will not stop believing that our kids and their kids deserve a better future and frankly, as humans, we haven’t been quite good in providing it so far. So, let’s make the change now. In the future, we will be judged by what we did. The once that are closing their eyes to what is happening to our planet are irresponsible to themselves and to the future generations. We shall not be part of this. But, if you start now to work on sustainability, it will give next generations much more time in the future. This is my firm belief. We love this planet, it’s our only one, and we need to invest into sustainability. It is our public duty as people, and it is not only just to be on the right side of the history for the history books, but because of our survival.
