The Linear Economy – a Problem in All Sectors

Traditionally, products were designed for convenience and low cost, with no afterthought or consideration to its impact on the earth and the environment. “The way our economies extract, use, then dispose of resources is putting pressure on our natural systems, communities, and public health.” A linear economy moves in a straight line from resource extraction to waste disposal. The pharmacy industry is no exception, with millions of plastic medication bottles that end up in the landfill, incinerator, and our oceans.

A Circular Economy – A different way to practice pharmacy

The circular economy aims to retain and recover as much value as possible from resources by reusing, repairing, refurbishing, remanufacturing, repurposing, or recycling products and materials.

At VialCycle, we put this into practice by offering a sustainable alternative to single-use plastics. Our glass medication bottles are cleaned, sanitized, and reused indefinitely throughout their life cycle. Glass is 100% recyclable and can always be made into a product of the same high quality. While it’s true that all used plastic can be turned into new products, the process of collecting, sorting, and reprocessing it is costly—and plastic degrades each time it’s reused, limiting its lifespan to just one or two cycles.