Blurs

Switzerland is famous for watches, banks, chocolate and mountains. But one of the most important things it sells to the world comes in much smaller packages. Pills. Vials. Injections. Vaccines. Biological medicines. And increasingly, highly sophisticated therapies developed from biotechnology. The pharmaceutical industry has become one of the central pillars of the Swiss economy. In 2025, Swiss exports reached a record CHF 287 billion, with chemicals and pharmaceuticals accounting for CHF 152 billion — approximately 53% of all Swiss merchandise exports. The increase was particularly driven by serums and vaccines. But those numbers conceal a much more interesting story. - How did a small, landlocked country become a pharmaceutical superpower? - How are medicines actually tested there? - Who decides whether they can be sold? - How are they promoted? - Who pays for them? And perhaps most importantly: Where does all the money go? The Swiss pharmaceutical machine Switzerland's pharmaceu...

The Medicines We Leave Behind: How Pharmaceuticals Are Entering Britain's Rivers Every Day Every day across the United Kingdom, millions of people take prescription medicines to control blood pressure, treat infections, manage diabetes, ease pain, reduce depression, prevent seizures and improve countless other medical conditions.  These medicines save lives, improve quality of life and form one of the greatest achievements of modern healthcare. Yet few people consider what happens after the medicine has done its job. The answer begins not in a pharmacy or hospital, but in the human body. Many medicines are only partially absorbed before being processed by the liver and kidneys.  Depending on the drug, a significant proportion may leave the body in urine either unchanged or as metabolites—chemical by-products created during metabolism. Every flush of a toilet begins a journey through the nation's sewer network toward wastewater treatment works and, ultimately, Britain's rive...