• New extraction kits reduce use of plastics by up to 63% and cardboard by up to 42% compared to QIAGEN standard kits
• Three offerings are first of a wave of sustainability-driven product innovations
• Company reduces plastic transportation packaging material by 9% in 2021 and is aiming for further reductions

QIAGEN N.V. (NYSE: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA) today announced its new QIAwave product line by launching three nucleic acid extraction kits that use fewer components and produce less waste than existing ones. They are the first of their type to use both recycled plastics and space-saving chemical concentrates.

The QIAwave RNA Mini Kit, QIAwave DNA Blood & Tissue Kit and QIAwave Plasmid Miniprep Kit use up to 63% less plastic and up to 42% less cardboard than QIAGEN’s most popular kits for extracting DNA, RNA and plasmid DNA from samples. That makes them a more sustainable alternative to existing products – a major step in reducing the environmental impact of QIAGEN’s overall portfolio.

“QIAwave products are designed in collaboration with our customers to tackle the persistent problem of laboratory waste faced by scientists all over the world,” said Thomas Schweins, Senior Vice President, Head of Life Sciences. “These three kits are the first in a wave of continuous improvements and product evolutions that will reduce the environmental footprint of our products, while still delivering the same QIAGEN quality.”

The new QIAwave products feature fewer components, waste tubes made from 100% recycled plastic, and suitable buffer concentrates in smaller bottles, rather than ready-to-go mixes. More compact kits and new ways of packing them reduce the amount of cardboard needed to box them up. Instructions for re-using some components are available online.

QIAGEN aims to reduce plastic transportation packaging waste by a further 9% in 2022, having cut it by 9.6% in 2021. The company has striven to reduce its plastic footprint since the formation of its Plastic Footprint Task Force in 2018 – for example, by replacing expanded-polystyrene boxes for cooled shipments with recyclable alternatives and other forms of plastic packaging with more eco-friendly alternatives.

Reducing its plastic footprint is just one aspect of QIAGEN’s sustainability initiatives. The company has pledged to cut carbon emissions in line with a science-based target to reach “net-zero” by 2050, and constantly monitors its environmental impact, economic influence and corporate citizenship around the world. The sustainability agency ISS ESG has given QIAGEN its top-flight “Prime” rating.

More information about QIAwave can be found here.

More information about QIAGEN’s vision of a sustainable future can be found here.

About QIAGEN

QIAGEN N.V., a Netherlands-based holding company, is the leading global provider of Sample to Insight solutions that enable customers to gain valuable molecular insights from samples containing the building blocks of life. Our sample technologies isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from blood, tissue and other materials. Assay technologies make these biomolecules visible and ready for analysis. Bioinformatics software and knowledge bases interpret data to report relevant, actionable insights. Automation solutions tie these together in seamless and cost-effective workflows. QIAGEN provides solutions to more than 500,000 customers around the world in Molecular Diagnostics (human healthcare), Applied Testing (primarily forensics), Pharma (pharma and biotech companies) and Academia (life sciences research). As of December 31, 2021, QIAGEN employed more than 6,000 people in over 35 locations worldwide. Further information can be found at http://www.qiagen.com.

Forward-Looking Statement

Certain statements contained in this press release may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. To the extent that any of the statements contained herein relating to QIAGEN's products, collaborations markets, strategy or operating results, including without limitation its expected adjusted net sales and adjusted diluted earnings results, are forward-looking, such statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that involve a number of uncertainties and risks. Such uncertainties and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with management of growth and international operations (including the effects of currency fluctuations, regulatory processes and dependence on logistics), variability of operating results and allocations between customer classes, the commercial development of markets for our products to customers in academia, pharma, applied testing and molecular diagnostics; changing relationships with customers, suppliers and strategic partners; competition; rapid or unexpected changes in technologies; fluctuations in demand for QIAGEN's products (including fluctuations due to general economic conditions, the level and timing of customers' funding, budgets and other factors); our ability to obtain regulatory approval of our products; difficulties in successfully adapting QIAGEN's products to integrated solutions and producing such products; the ability of QIAGEN to identify and develop new products and to differentiate and protect our products from competitors' products; market acceptance of QIAGEN's new products and the integration of acquired technologies and businesses. For further information, please refer to the discussions in reports that QIAGEN has filed with, or furnished to, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Category: Corporate

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