Embedding sustainable practices into pharmaceutical R&D: what are the challenges?

The world's population is predicted to exceed 9 billion by 2050, with growth in the developing world projected to triple global resource consumption. Industries, including pharmaceuticals, will still be competing for one Earth's worth of resources to meet this tripled demand. In order to thrive in the future, it is clear that routes to pharmaceuticals, which currently produce in the order of 100 kg of waste for each kilogram of drug in an optimized process, will need to be more efficient and sustainable.