Blood tube recycling could give new life to high-quality materials that are currently incinerated after use. [Photo via Adobe Stock]
Becton, Dickinson and Co. (NYSE:BDX) will explore blood tube recycling in a sustainability pilot program.
BD’s partners include Odense University Hospital, the Health Innovation Centre of Southern Denmark, Danish Technological Institute, and GMAF Circular Medico/EcoFitt.
These plastic blood collection tubes are made from high-quality raw materials, but are incinerated with other biohazardous waste after use. The blood tube recycling pilot program will investigate the steps for recycling the tubes, including an evaluation of the recycled plastic’s quality and safety and hygiene precautions.
BD is the world’s largest manufacturer of evacuated blood collection tubes, BD Sustainable Medical Technology Institute Amit Limaye said.
“As part of our 2030+ environmental, social and governance goals, we are focused on reducing the environmental impact of our product portfolio,” Limaye said in a news release. “This partnership and program are a great example of like-minded stakeholders coming together to drive progress toward a greener, more sustainable health care system, because success cannot be accomplished by any one stakeholder alone.”
Denmark’s Climate Action Strategy’s goal is to cut the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions by 70% in 2030 compared to 1990 levels.
“Hospitals in Denmark are an active participant in the country’s green agenda, and knowing that blood collection tubes are one of healthcare’s most commonly used products, we saw an opportunity to explore a solution that would allow for these tubes to be recycled,” Mads Nybo, chief physician of the Department of Clinical Biochemistry at Odense University Hospital, said in the news release.
BD’s medical segment is the 14th-largest medical device company by revenue, according to the Medical Design & Outsourcing 2022 Medtech Big 100 list.