The University of Helsinki will establish its first professorship in security of supply to strengthen research and education relevant to improving Finland's preparedness for future geopolitical, climate and health crises. The Finnish pharmaceutical company Orion Pharma has donated €30,000 to the professorship.
The recent coronavirus pandemic taught Finns a new term: security of supply.
Of course, security of supply, or preparedness for crises, had been ensured in Finnish society in a variety of ways already before the pandemic. However, in the exceptional circumstances the importance of security of supply was elevated to a particular prominence in headlines and public awareness.
"We all remember how clearly the significance of preparedness came to the fore," says Dean Jari Yli-Kauhaluoma of the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Helsinki.
Now the University is in the process of establishing its first professorship in security of supply. The position will be shared by the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry and the Faculty of Pharmacy.
Launching research is important
Both faculties have a professor of practice specialising in security of supply.
"Thanks to their efforts too, we have over the years come to the conclusion that, in terms of both food and pharmaceuticals, Finland should have university-level expertise in security of supply, which naturally involves high-quality research," Yli-Kauhaluoma says.
According to Yli-Kauhaluoma, academic research on the effectiveness and enhancement of security of supply has been scarce, even though society has attended to this issue. Launching research will increase expertise in the field, and the professor's job description also includes related teaching and thesis supervision. In other words, educational institutions will be fostering future professionals well versed in the various perspectives of security of supply.
According to Yli-Kauhaluoma, the goal is that Finland will fare as well as possible in any disruptions and crises with the help of research and knowledge.
An important part of the whole is ensuring the availability of food and drugs under normal conditions as well. This translates into improving the stability of current food and drug production and distribution chains.
The impact of global circumstances on Finns' medicine cabinets
The Finnish pharmaceutical company Orion Pharma has donated €30,000 for the establishment of the professorship in security of supply.
"Each donation is important, and we've had several other donation pledges," Yli-Kauhaluoma says.
According to Outi Vaarala, Executive Vice-President, Head of Innovative Medicines Business and R&D at Orion, security of supply is important to Orion's operations in all circumstances.
"In addition to manufacturing and selling drugs, we ensure their availability. Drugs must also be available in times of crisis, for which we have always been prepared. This is why it was very natural to get involved in supporting academic efforts and research when the University reached out to us," Vaarala says.
Supply failures pose challenges to the pharmaceutical sector. They are situations where a drug is temporarily unavailable in pharmacies or at wholesalers. According to Yli-Kauhaluoma, supply failures are sometimes caused by disruptions in the production of pharmaceutical raw materials or drug manufacturers' production chains.
"Long international production chains and geopolitical factors have provoked discussion in the European Union on increasing the production capacity of critical pharmaceutical agents and drugs in Europe. In addition, safeguarding domestic drug production and related expertise is crucial for the security of supply in pharmaceutical service."
Climate change challenges our security of supply
Dean Yli-Kauhaluoma points out that, besides geopolitical upheavals, societal security of supply is being tested by pandemics and the major global challenge of climate change.
"International trade and logistics are particularly relevant to pharmaceutical service, and I believe security analyses related to this whole will be something to consider for the future professor."
Clean water is an invaluable raw material in the manufacture of both food and pharmaceuticals, and the climate crisis can contribute to restricting access to it.
Just like many other countries, Finland has fresh experience of a pandemic, and there is recent research-based knowledge on how Finland fared in it. According to a doctoral thesis by Satu Latonen, who defended her thesis at the University of Helsinki in March, the stakeholders in the Finnish pharmaceutical supply chain ultimately came out well in the sudden crisis, even though there were no comprehensive advance plans for exceptional circumstances in the sector.
