Environmentally aware

We are committed to advancing environmental sustainability initiatives across our operations and supply chain in support of a healthier planet. We seek to deliver value while always doing our best to protect the environment where we live and work. 

Two young children laying sprawled out side-by-side in a green lawn. They both have light skin, wear shorts and t-shirts, and have their hands behind their head.

As a leading healthcare company with a foundation in pharmaceutical distribution and an expanding portfolio of solutions for manufacturers, pharmacies, and providers, we have a unique ability to drive environmental sustainability throughout the supply chain. By pursuing opportunities within our own operations and partnering with our customers on environmental sustainability initiatives, we amplify our impact on a global scale. We work collaboratively across the enterprise to share best practices in energy efficiency, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions management, waste management, and responsible packaging to maximize our efforts.

Our environmental data today includes actual and estimated figures from across Cencora, including Alliance Healthcare and PharmaLex where possible. As we continue to integrate globally across recently acquired businesses, we will continue to prioritize accessing and sharing more complete actual data. Our approach to ESG governance reflects our commitment to track our global environmental sustainability progress, and our environmental sustainability mindset influences our business decisions.

Reducing our emissions

We continue to focus on reducing our environmental impact through our science-based target, set in line with the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi) guidance. Cencora commits to reduce absolute Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions 54.6% by FY2032 from a FY2019 base year. We also commit that 82% of our suppliers by spend, covering purchased goods and services, will have science-based targets by 2027. Our emissions targets were validated by the SBTi as being consistent with the reduction required to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Additionally, we have made two region-specific GHG emissions reduction commitments. Alliance Healthcare UK has pledged to become net carbon zero by 2030 for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions within their operations, and Cencora pledged to reduce our U.S. Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 50% by 2030 as part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Health Care Sector Climate Pledge.

To reach our emissions reduction targets, we plan to reduce consumption through optimization programs and energy efficiency measures and will decarbonize our operations with investments in renewable energy and alternative fuel vehicles. For example, in FY23, AH Netherlands increased the number of hybrid vans so that 52% of their fleet is now hybrid. As we plan for FY24, we look to continue our internal emissions reduction efforts and to engage our top suppliers by emissions to support our Scope 3 reduction strategy.

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Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions

We collect and analyze data from across the enterprise to calculate our total GHG emissions for Cencora. The chart below shows our FY19 Baseline and our latest FY23 GHG emissions.

FY19 Baseline and FY23 GHG emissions

Scope	FY19 Emissions (MTCO2e)⁴	FY23 Emissions (MT CO2e)
Scope 1	98,742	108,712
Scope 2¹	110,191	90,652
Scope 2²	100,593	87,492
Scope 3³	19,881,916	25,878,873

1. Scope 2 location-based emissions.
2. Scope 2 market-based emissions.
3. Scope 3 emissions calculations are largely based on high level estimates and some actual data as available across all 15 categories.
4. FY19 Scope 1 & 2 baseline was recalculated in FY23 due to divestiture of our stake in Alliance Healthcare Egypt.

For more information on our methodology, see the Reporting Index .

In FY23, Alliance Healthcare Romania expanded its solar panel program after a successful implementation in 2022, while Alliance Healthcare in Spain began planning a solar panel installation project.

In 2024, we expect other sites in the UK and the Czech Republic to explore implementation of solar projects. In addition, after completing a global renewable energy assessment in FY22, we kicked off an initiative in FY23 to look at specific geographies for on-site and large-scale power purchase agreements.

As connectors between those who create and those who prescribe and dispense medication, distributors play a critical role in the pharmaceutical supply chain. To ensure the resilience of our operations, we are continuously assessing our climate-related risks so that we can serve our customers and their patients without disruption. In FY23, we completed business impact analyses for three of our largest businesses in the U.S. This assessment incorporated climate impact assessment results from previous years, as well as other elements across functional areas that impact business resilience, preparing us to serve customers and keep our team members safe in the event of potential business disruptions.

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As a healthcare company, we recognize the impact of climate change on human and animal health. Our focus extends beyond the disruption climate change has on operations as we seek to mitigate how it affects vulnerable populations’ ability to access care and medicines. The Cencora Impact Foundation has made numerous grants to support the vital work at the intersection of climate change, nature, and health. Grant recipients in FY23 included the CDC Foundation and World Wildlife Fund.

CDC Foundation

World Wildlife Fund

Building sustainably

As we expand globally, we are advancing our environmentally sustainable building practices to manage our carbon footprint. In FY23, we achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Gold certification for our Cencora headquarters building in Conshohocken, PA, U.S. Our eco-responsible building in Paris, which conducts business and operations as Alliance Healthcare, has earned a Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) Very Good certification, and our building in Meung sur Loire in France, which houses Alloga operations, received both BREEAM and BiodiverCity certifications.

In Veghel, The Netherlands, the Alliance Healthcare campus, featuring numerous environmentally sustainable elements, was completed, and construction began on the site’s second fully sustainable warehouse. Once completed, that warehouse will include a fully automated storage system and production lines for “pack to patient” prescription orders, with more than 60 robots performing various tasks to support team members in fulfilling customer orders. Alliance Healthcare Netherlands also held an information day on environmental sustainability for representatives from Dutch health insurers. Held at the Veghel campus, the visit featured a presentation of sustainability initiatives from Alphega, Boots, and Alcura along with other Alliance Healthcare businesses.

The Cencora corporate headquarters building during a sunny day in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Part of a grassy lawn near the building is visible.

Waste management, recycling, and sustainable packaging

We are committed to reducing waste through source reduction, recycling, and other innovative solutions. In FY23, Cencora continued offering a short-dated medication specials solution, which offers customers access to products nearing their expiration date at a discounted price to reduce supply chain waste. These are products purchased directly from manufacturers and offered purposefully for the program. Alliance Healthcare in the UK is also making progress to reduce single-use plastic secondary packaging within the business by 60% over three years as part of its Getting Drastic with Plastic campaign. After implementing solutions such as reusable totes and paper-based packaging materials, the program has removed over 230 metric tons of single-use plastic as of November 2022. Within our U.S. Human Health distribution centers, we continue to use an environmentally sustainable, cold-chain packaging solution that includes reusable totes and plant-based, phase-change material ice packs.

World Courier’s multi-use packaging (MUP) portfolio offers a range of advanced and reusable packaging solutions used to transport sensitive medical shipments with extensive validation measures to safeguard temperatures for up to one week. Each multi-use package gets returned to one of World Courier’s facilities to be cleaned, quality checked, and serviced in preparation for its next assignment. With more than 40% of shipments utilizing reusable packaging, we effectively reduce waste and minimize manufacturing-related emissions.

We continue to address the challenge of reducing waste from product packaging that arrives at our facilities from suppliers through seeking alternative disposal options for hard-to-recycle plastics and utilize our third-party waste management partners to help identify opportunities. Following the example of the PenCycle program in the UK, Alliance Healthcare France and Alphega Pharmacy launched a similar program with Novo Nordisk to recycle the manufacturer’s disposable injection pens in France, which is estimated to be about 25 million pens per year. Known as Returpen, this is the first partnership of its kind in the country with a goal to recycle up to 85% of injection pen materials, which would otherwise end up in landfills or incinerators, to be used in chairs and lamps.

In FY23, we produced a total of 25,541 metric tons of non-hazardous waste.

Scope of waste data detailed in our ESG Reporting Index: GRI 306 

ESG Reporting Index

17,936

metric tons of waste were recycled

7,605

metric tons of waste were landfilled

Transportation efficiency

In support of our emissions reduction efforts, we are committed to seeking efficiencies across our global transportation network and are continuously looking for route optimization opportunities among other strategies. In FY23, Cencora completed an internal assessment on our French fleet, reviewing data from over 240 vehicles across 70 of our locations. The key objective of this study was to outline a strategy for transitioning the Cencora France delivery vans from diesel to zero-emission.

World Courier conducted a trial with Telematics in their vehicle fleet based in Dusseldorf, Germany. The trial achieved a significant 13% reduction in fuel usage and a 4% decrease in mileage through improved control of the fleet, including optimizing driving patterns and routes. Building on this success, World Courier is exploring opportunities to expand the implementation of Telematics across the remaining vehicle fleet in Germany and Australia, followed by World Courier Ground Europe.

In addition, World Courier began supporting the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) with a cargo partner, which will result in more than 146,500 kg of reduced CO₂ emissions or the equivalent to more than 2,000 shipments from London to Switzerland. SAF is made from renewable biomass and waste resources with a fraction of the carbon footprint of conventional jet fuel. These efforts contribute to Cencora’s environmental sustainability goals and demonstrate our dedication to innovation and operational efficiency.

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