HK Inno.N announced that its gastroesophageal reflux disease treatment, 'K-Cab 50mg,' has become the world's first oral drug to receive Environmental Product Declaration (EPD) certification on September 7.
EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) is a system that quantifies the environmental impact of a product throughout its entire lifecycle—from raw material production to manufacturing, packaging, and distribution—according to international standards, and is verified by a third party. It is often referred to as a 'product's environmental ID.'
The EPD for K-Cab 50mg was registered in June this year on the internationally recognized platform 'EPD-Global.' Prior to registration, the International Green Sustainability Certification (IGSC) conducted independent verification in accordance with ISO 14025 standards. HK Inno.N completed a life cycle assessment (LCA) following ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards.
The assessment scope includes the manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients, as well as the production, packaging, and distribution of the finished drug. However, it excludes the patient consumption phase and disposal process.
The pharmaceutical and biotech industries have faced challenges in implementing EPDs due to the lack of certified environmental assessment guidelines specific to pharmaceuticals. In November of last year, the British Standards Institution (BSI) published the international standard PCR (Product Category Rules) for pharmaceutical environmental assessments, 'PAS 2090:2025,' establishing relevant criteria. HK Inno.N explained that it secured the EPD for K-Cab based on these guidelines.
The company emphasized that obtaining this EPD allows it to present verified environmental information for its products to global customers and buyers in markets such as Latin America and Asia. This achievement provides reliable data in a global market where standards for calculating carbon emissions across the supply chain (Scope 3) and environmental audits have become more stringent.
A representative from HK Inno.N stated, "We plan to expand environmental assessments for our key products in the future to enhance the environmental information management system across our product portfolio."
Meanwhile, HK Inno.N's 'K-Cab' was launched in South Korea in 2019 as a P-CAB class treatment for gastroesophageal reflux disease and has maintained the top position in the domestic market for digestive ulcer medications for six consecutive years.
According to industry reports, K-Cab achieved 120 billion won in external prescription sales in the first half of this year. In April alone, it recorded 20.8 billion won, ranking first among all pharmaceuticals tracked by the market research firm UBIST.
EPD (Environmental Product Declaration) is a system that quantifies the environmental impact of a product throughout its entire lifecycle—from raw material production to manufacturing, packaging, and distribution—according to international standards, and is verified by a third party. It is often referred to as a 'product's environmental ID.'
The EPD for K-Cab 50mg was registered in June this year on the internationally recognized platform 'EPD-Global.' Prior to registration, the International Green Sustainability Certification (IGSC) conducted independent verification in accordance with ISO 14025 standards. HK Inno.N completed a life cycle assessment (LCA) following ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards.
The assessment scope includes the manufacturing of active pharmaceutical ingredients, as well as the production, packaging, and distribution of the finished drug. However, it excludes the patient consumption phase and disposal process.
The pharmaceutical and biotech industries have faced challenges in implementing EPDs due to the lack of certified environmental assessment guidelines specific to pharmaceuticals. In November of last year, the British Standards Institution (BSI) published the international standard PCR (Product Category Rules) for pharmaceutical environmental assessments, 'PAS 2090:2025,' establishing relevant criteria. HK Inno.N explained that it secured the EPD for K-Cab based on these guidelines.
The company emphasized that obtaining this EPD allows it to present verified environmental information for its products to global customers and buyers in markets such as Latin America and Asia. This achievement provides reliable data in a global market where standards for calculating carbon emissions across the supply chain (Scope 3) and environmental audits have become more stringent.
A representative from HK Inno.N stated, "We plan to expand environmental assessments for our key products in the future to enhance the environmental information management system across our product portfolio."
Meanwhile, HK Inno.N's 'K-Cab' was launched in South Korea in 2019 as a P-CAB class treatment for gastroesophageal reflux disease and has maintained the top position in the domestic market for digestive ulcer medications for six consecutive years.
According to industry reports, K-Cab achieved 120 billion won in external prescription sales in the first half of this year. In April alone, it recorded 20.8 billion won, ranking first among all pharmaceuticals tracked by the market research firm UBIST.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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