Better Health for All
20
Roche's core business in pharmaceuticals and diagnostics delivers innovative solutions for chronic and life-threatening conditions, including MS and HER2+ breast cancer treatments, and rapid tests for infectious diseases like COVID-19, flu, and RSV.
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The company demonstrates revolutionary healthcare data responsibility, adhering to 13 data ethics principles, implementing F.A.I.R. principles, using Data Protection Impact Assessments, applying strong cybersecurity, and sharing clinical trial data with platforms like Vivli and the European Medicines Agency.
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Roche exhibits excellent risk transparency by posting clinical trial protocols on ClinicalTrials.gov
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and disclosing data processing details.
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During global health crises, Roche developed the first commercial high-throughput COVID-19 test,
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optimized stockpile strategies,
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and provided extensive disaster relief, including 4,000 vials of ceftriaxone for Morocco earthquake relief.
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For pharma patent flexibility, Roche does not file or enforce patents in Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Low-Income Countries (LICs), and most Lower-Middle-Income Countries,
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and supports the TRIPS Council's delay in implementing certain provisions for LDCs until 2033.
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In clinical trial ethics, Roche posts protocols publicly,
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ensures robust informed consent processes in lay language,
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respects participants' right to withdraw consent,
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and manages all studies in compliance with international guidelines and ethical standards.
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Fair Money & Economic Opportunity
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Roche Holding AG is a global healthcare company focused on pharmaceuticals and diagnostics. The company does not offer lending, insurance, or deposit services to consumers, nor does it provide debt products or operate financial service access points. Therefore, all KPIs related to 'Fair Money & Economic Opportunity,' which are designed for financial institutions, are not applicable to Roche's core business model, resulting in a neutral score for each.
Fair Pay & Worker Respect
-30
In 2024, 20 substantiated human rights violations, which included discrimination and harassment, led to contract terminations.
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The company's Global Employee Opinion Survey (GEOS) in 2023 reported an engagement score of 73%.
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Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing
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Roche has a Supplier Code of Conduct, effective January 1, 2025, which outlines ethical, social, and environmental standards, including expectations against forced and child labor, and responsible sourcing of minerals.
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The company expects suppliers to adhere to these principles and can verify compliance through its Supplier Sustainability Assurance Visit (SSAV) program.
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Roche joined Supply Nation in 2024 to connect with Indigenous-owned businesses
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and develops partnerships with diverse suppliers.
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In 2024, Roche's US subsidiaries (Genentech and Roche Diagnostics) spent USD 987.4 million
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and USD 422.5 million
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respectively on diverse suppliers.
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However, the provided articles do not contain specific, company-wide quantitative data for the percentage of spend covered by fair-trade certifications, average audit frequency for tier-1 suppliers, number of substantiated forced or child labor incidents in the supply chain, percentage of suppliers with traceable provenance data, median days to close corrective action plans, percentage of supplier contracts with enforceable ethical-sourcing clauses, or the share of spend on high-risk materials as a percentage of total procurement.
Honest & Fair Business
0
Roche and its subsidiary Genentech incurred approximately $480 million USD in ethics-related regulatory fines in the past three years (2023-2025).
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This includes a €444 million fine, reinstated in 2025 by the French Supreme Court, for anti-competitive practices and misleading communications, as well as smaller fines totaling over $566,000 for environmental and benefit plan violations in 2023-2024.
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The company received an EcoVadis rating of 69/100 in 2025.
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Roche has a formal whistleblower policy with a "speak-up channel" available in 103 countries and 53 languages, allowing for confidential and anonymous reporting, managed by an external provider.
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A non-retaliation policy is in place.
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In 2024, 648 alleged violations were resolved, with 354 found, leading to actions such as 98 employment contract terminations and 141 warnings.
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Reports are acknowledged within seven days, and status updates are provided at least every three months.
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Roche also maintains a comprehensive anti-corruption policy, effective July 1, 2025, which includes a zero-tolerance stance on corruption, global mandatory eLearning, periodic training for collaborators, and reasonable due diligence on counterparties.
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Kind to Animals
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Roche's Pharma research centers, Genentech, and Chugai maintain full AAALACi accreditation
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, with sites conforming to or exceeding AAALACi standards
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and undergoing triennial reviews
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. The company's animal testing policy adheres to 3Rs principles
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, uses animals only when scientifically justified and regulatorily required
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, and mandates pain minimization
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. Roche has banned the near-drowning test on mice and other small animals
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. Alternative testing methods are actively explored and used
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, including human-based organoid models
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, in-silico methods
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, and organ-on-a-chip systems
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. These alternatives have replaced over 11,000 LAL-based BETs at one pilot site
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and avoided thousands of mice for potency assays
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, with non-animal assays becoming standard in regulatory submissions
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. Roche engages with animal welfare organizations like Swiss Animal Protection through Interpharma
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and communicates with external governance and regulatory bodies
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.
No War, No Weapons
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The provided articles do not contain specific, concrete data points or explicit statements regarding Roche's involvement in arms manufacturing, military contracts, dual-use technologies, sales to embargoed regimes, peacebuilding investments, or any other metrics related to the 'No War, No Weapons' ethical value. While Roche is described as a healthcare company, the articles do not explicitly state that it has zero revenue from defense contracts, no dual-use products, or verified zero exposure to controversial weapons, as required by the rubric for scoring. Therefore, all KPIs are omitted due to a lack of direct evidence.
Planet-Friendly Business
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Roche's total Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions were 5,331,000 tCO₂e in 2025, a decrease from 6,707 ktCO₂e in 2022.
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The company's near-term and long-term net-zero targets, including a 70% absolute reduction in Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 2029 and a 22.5% absolute reduction in Scope 3 GHG emissions by 2029 (both from a 2022 base year), have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
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Roche aims for net-zero GHG emissions across its value chain by 2045.
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Approximately 86% of total electricity consumption is sourced from sustainable means.
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In 2024, water withdrawn totaled 15.5 million m³, with group sales of CHF 60.5 billion, equating to 232.9 m³ per $1M revenue.
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Roche does not currently purchase or use voluntary carbon offsets.
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Supplier engagement, aimed at setting science-based targets, increased from 24% in 2022 to 49% in 2025.
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Genentech, a Roche unit, was fined over $158,000 by the EPA for six hazardous waste violations.
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Roche publishes a Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) report, indicating alignment with TCFD recommendations and including climate scenario analysis for 1.5°C and 2°C or lower pathways, which are considered in its strategy.
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In 2024, 9% of risk-weighted water consumption originated from high-stress regions.
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Respect for Cultures & Communities
0
No specific, quantitative evidence was found in the provided articles for any of the Key Performance Indicators related to 'Respect for Cultures & Communities'. Information regarding formal partnerships with indigenous or local community groups, percentage of revenue reinvested in local community development, cultural appropriation incidents, cultural impact assessment protocols, local employment ratios, coverage of formal grievance mechanisms for community concerns, average time to resolve community complaints, FPIC participation rates, community governance inclusion, cultural preservation investment, local procurement share, indigenous supplier count, cultural site protection, social license to operate, charitable giving to cultural heritage organizations, community fund allocation, language inclusivity assessment scores, cultural incident response effectiveness, or cultural sensitivity training completion rates was not explicitly stated or was not company-wide in scope.
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Safe & Smart Tech
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Roche has not reported any data breaches in the past 5 years; a cyberattack in July 2019 resulted in no sensitive information loss.
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The company emphasizes security, with processes to identify, assess, and mitigate risks.
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Following this 2019 incident, no unauthorized data use was reported.
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Roche also emphasizes privacy and employs anonymization, pseudonymization, and encryption techniques in its AI systems.
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Furthermore, Roche has adopted 13 public-facing AI Ethics Principles, aligning with corporate values and external guidelines, and provides training and awareness programs on AI ethics.
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Zero Waste & Sustainable Products
-30
Roche achieved a 68.5% non-hazardous waste recycling rate in 2024.
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The company reduced plastic waste produced by 3.1% in 2024 compared to 2020.
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Roche has set quantitative, company-wide waste reduction targets for 2020-2025, including a 10% reduction in general waste per employee, an 80% general waste recycling rate, and a 10% reduction in plastic waste, with some targets aligned with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi).
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For hazardous waste, Roche achieved a 99% reduction in chemical waste disposal to landfill between 2015 and 2020
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, prohibits landfilling of chemical and problematic medicinal waste
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, and incinerates approximately 89% of its chemical waste.
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The company has implemented several waste reduction initiatives, such as the EverGreener program, Green Biopharma Program, REACT program, separate LDPE plastic collection, a wastewater pretreatment plant, and the use of reusable shippers.
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Circular design principles are integrated through a Product Stewardship Performance (PSP) tool used by product development teams to score and improve product design at each lifecycle stage.
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Roche expects all its suppliers to meet internal SHE standards, verifying compliance through audits and ceasing business with non-compliant suppliers.
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The company provides comprehensive customer waste education through safety data sheets and by making liquid waste testing results available to healthcare providers, patients, employees, and the public.
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