As we embark on a fresh new year, we take a look back on the trends that shaped the pharmaceutical industry in 2022 to uncover sustainable and long-term solutions that will dominate the industry in the coming years. In this article, we pinpoint three top trends that we believe will have the most impact on packing and labeling for the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries in 2023.
1) RFID
RFID solutions in the pharmaceutical industry are expected to grow with a CAGR of 7% from 2022 to 2027. This trend's main driver is the rise in counterfeit medications and patient connectivity issues. RFID is reaching a stage of innovation in which it's becoming more efficient in monitoring drug quality and product movement. These technological advancements offer end-to-end inventory tracking resulting in a more transparent supply chain, which helps brands overcome the complexities of pharmaceutical packaging, thus improving the safety of patients and end users.
The most prominent applications for RFID-enabled labels in the pharmaceutical industry are for the tracking and tracing of instruments, medicines, and samples that enable inventory accuracy, product authentication, pharmaceutical drug safety, and anti-counterfeiting. We’ve had our eye on this trend for a number of years and have developed an innovative portfolio of high-quality products, including tamper-evident RFID and luminescent labels, that provide the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry with the necessary information to fight these pressing issues.
2) Cold Chain
Most vaccines, biological, and serum therapies must be kept at temperatures below 8°C to maintain their full efficacy. Those innovative therapies are becoming the golden standard in treatment of a wide variety of diseases. In addition, the rise in infectious diseases, the continuous development of various lifestyle diseases, and other factors are contributing to an increase in the number of drugs that require storage and transport in temperature-controlled conditions. These factors are leading to an expected growth in the cold chain market of 9.03% CAGR by 2025, thus requiring a need for the adaptation of packaging and labeling solutions that have optimum performance in low temperatures.
The healthcare logistics market is under pressure to significantly advance the cold chain market in the coming years. Our Cold Chain Portfolio offers materials with the lowest application temperature available and that are specifically designed to hold fast during cryogenic and other low-temperature transportation and storage
3) Sustainability
Packaging producers, label manufacturers, converters, and brand owners are under immense pressure to develop sustainable packaging to reduce waste and ultimately satisfy fast-changing regulations to advance the circular economy. Updates to packaging and packaging waste regulations present new requirements for packaging recyclability, recycled content, and other mandates on packaging reusability.
We offer an extensive portfolio of products and services that help our customers make their products more sustainable. Our Sustainable ADvantage portfolio includes thinner materials, recycled content materials, and solutions that enable recycling, including a full spectrum of labeling materials for ethical and over-the-counter medicines packaging. These materials include sustainable labels for squeezable plastic bottles, security seals, blister packs, and opaque constructions for relabeling applications. Our sustainable pharmaceutical materials are designed with patient safety in mind.
We're filling the gap between the new technological developments and our customers. By bringing innovative solutions with the patient's safety in mind, we're supporting pharmaceutical companies in overcoming current challenges and preventing new ones from appearing.
