5,7 million Euro to Swedish research on environmental impact of pharmaceuticals
Wednesday, October 05, 2011
The MistraPharma research program has been granted 5,7 million Euro (SEK 52 millions) for continued research into the environmental impact of pharmaceuticals by the The Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research (Mistra).
MistraPharma is supported by the Swedish Medical Products Agency.
“Looking into the environmental impact of pharmaceuticals, at all stages in the life-cycle of a drug, is still an area where much work needs to be done. The additional funding is important to move forward”, say’s Charlotte Unger, Chairman of the MistraPharma program, as well as Environmental Director at the Swedish Medical Products Agency (MPA).
Following the first phase, completed in December 2010, the new funding will be used for an additional four years continuation of the research program.
The second phase is to focus on:
- Identifying specific pharmaceutical substances with high environmental impact.
- Develop novel techniques for removal of pharmaceuticals from waste of production processes.
- Risk management issues, and regulatory governance.
The research by MistraPharma has provided important input into the development of a new proposal from the Swedish government for introducing environmental standards into the regulatory framework for pharmaceuticals. A key issue is to include environmental aspects into the concept of Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP).