Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories: Ambitious ESG Goals

Started in 1984 and with presence in over 60 countries, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories is committed to providing access to affordable and innovative medicines. The company reported a total revenue of Rs 14,405.2 crore from operations with a profit after tax of Rs 1,623.2 crore.

Environmental footprint

Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories began voluntary disclosures on social and environmental aspects over two decades ago. Sustainability is one of the company’s core values. The company reported 14 per cent reduction in energy intensity from the previous financial year, 14 per cent reduction in water intensity from the previous financial year, and 21 per cent reduction in Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emission intensity from previous financial year. The company also implemented fuel substitution projects such as coal to briquettes and furnace oil to piped natural gas.

Waste is reduced through technological interventions and ongoing initiatives including sustainable packaging, waste source segregation, and process optimisation etc. Almost 32,506.2 metric tonnes of hazardous waste was co-processed or recycled. Plastic boxes have been replaced with paper boxes for commercialised products (Practin tablets) and triple laminated films and LDPE bags have been removed from primary packaging (Ibandronate tablets).

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories is an equal opportunity employer and has an inclusive and diverse work culture. Women may choose to work for 75 per cent of the time (7 hours per workday including breaks) or choose to work four days (8 hours per workday excluding breaks). For new mothers, counselling before and after birth is available 24*7 via the Employee Assistance Programme through the mental well-being partner YourDOST. There is also a Buddy Mother Programme, in which a friend (senior) is assigned to new mothers to counsel them and/ or talk about women-specific issues. In the event of a miscarriage, women can avail miscarriage leaves of up to six weeks immediately following the date of the incident.

The company’s aim is to have at least 35 per cent women in senior leadership (3x from current) by 2030 and have gender parity by 2035. By 2030, 3 per cent of the workforce is expected to be PWD.

Risk management

The company conducted transition and physical climate-change risk assessments across the short, medium, and long-term for their manufacturing locations, business partner manufacturing locations as well as raw material and product logistics and has assessed the risk for each location using available global models and are in the process of implementing location-specific responsive mitigation plans. They plan to continue conducting detailed quantitative, sensitive analyses of emerging risks, including climate change and water. The company has also identified and implemented various operational excellence initiatives that are integrated with the sustainability goals and address reduction in energy consumption, including replacing fossil fuel usage with renewable energy.

Sustainability targets

Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories has ambitious ESG goals for the next decade. The company is committed to becoming carbon neutral in direct operations by 2030, reducing indirect carbon emissions (Scope 3 emissions) by 2030, utilising 100 per cent renewable power by 2030, and becoming water positive by 2030.