Marketing lead at Origin, Steve Brownett-Gale, explores four key trends transforming pharmaceutical packaging in 2023 and the technologies on the horizon.
Key insights:
- Prefilled containers and delivery devices are becoming more common, empowering patients to self-administer their own medication at home.
- The active pharma packaging market is expected to grow, involving functions that are engineered to respond to changes in the atmosphere inside and outside the package.
- Developments in 3D visualisation and printing techniques are pushing the design boundaries of both primary and secondary packaging, saving time and money in material wastage and development costs.
In 2023, the pharmaceutical industry faces several financial and strategic risks and in response, must find new ways to offset regulatory and inflationary pressure. At the same time, the industry must continue to reach its sustainability milestones, protect patient safety and invest in innovation to develop the next generation of drugs and delivery systems.
Primary and secondary packaging design and development will continue to play a vital role in helping the global pharmaceutical market deliver on these goals.
Some of the areas of focus in 2023 will be continuing to champion accessibility and transferring more healthcare delivery to the home, innovations in active and intelligent packaging to deliver added value, and more sustainable materials and waste management.
Championing accessibility
The pressures facing health systems around the world are increasing and they are diverse, including ageing populations, staff shortages, rising costs and inefficiencies.
Empowering patients to self-administer their own medication at home will help to relieve some of the pressure. In response, prefilled containers and delivery devices are becoming more common.
Today, there is a greater focus on creating primary packaging that provides a safe and compatible barrier for medicine and a simple mode of delivery. Pre-filled syringes are one technology, acting as a singular vehicle for and direct administrator of the medicine, protecting its contents from contamination.
All compounds and primary packaging structures need to be extensively tested for materials, extractables and leachables, durability, shelf life and more, plus checked for suitability with secondary packaging. Certain compounds may be considered non-toxic, but when tested for temperature, failure analysis and more, demonstrate a risk to patients.
The evolution of pre-filled syringes is continuing with wearable injector technologies. Large-volume wearable injectors (LVWIs) provide benefit for healthcare systems and patients, moving treatment out of hospitals and into the home.
Thanks to the innovation of pre-filled syringes and the mobile connectivity of LVWIs, correct dosage adherence can be monitored remotely, ensuring the best possible care for patients without the need for regular hospital visits.
Active and intelligent packaging design
The active and intelligent pharmaceutical packaging market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9% by 2025.
‘Active’ refers to the packaging having active functions that are engineered to respond to changes in the atmosphere inside and outside the package, beyond the inert passive containment and protection of the product.
Pharma ingredients are volatile and sensitive, so primary packaging must work hard to overcome significant stability challenges, especially from moisture, oxygen, hydrocarbons and other gases.
Market demand is growing for solutions that offer a strong first line of defence, as well as proactively remove contaminants and reactive impurities within the packaging headspace.
Blister packaging presents more of a headache, with a limited amount of headspace between the product and the packaging. To reduce ingress, aluminium foils and high barrier thermoforms offer a partial solution but these cannot remove all impurities within the headspace.
Intelligent packaging is another exciting area of development.
User experience is benefitting from the mass adoption of QR-enabled packaging, helping to increase health literacy and patient compliance, too. People can get in-depth information about the product, dosing and storage recommendations by simply scanning a code with their smartphone or tablet.
RFID technology, using electromagnetic fields, is supporting anti-counterfeiting efforts by identifying tampering. Another key development is the application of thermochromic inks, used to print reactive temperature indicators on packaging, and smart sensors that can detect changes in humidity, light and temperature.
In clinical trials, smart packaging (featuring RFID tags) and wearable devices are promoting more secure interaction between patient and doctor by using real-time data to monitor compliance, identify side effects faster and improve health outcomes for both volunteers and, in the longer term, the wider community.
A cleaner, greener future
While some industries, such as cosmetics and food, have taken great strides in recent years to champion and switch to innovative sustainable packaging practices, the pharmaceutical industry faces a greater challenge.
Above all else, pharmaceutical packaging must protect the medicines they contain. Biological contaminants, humidity, temperature, light and even oxygen can degrade pharmaceutical products, so all packaging must provide protection from these external risks.
Additionally, products with added safety features, such as child-resistant mechanisms, anti-counterfeit technologies, dosage systems and labelling, can prevent packaging from being recycled and ultimately increase waste.
Developments in 3D visualisation and printing techniques are pushing the design boundaries of both primary and secondary packaging. These new methods can save huge amounts of time and money in material wastage and development costs as they enable companies to test and reject sub-standard ideas before high levels of investment.
Another eco packaging trend involves building key product features directly into primary and secondary packaging at the first instance, instead of combining multiple features later on in the supply chain.
For example, printing product and patient information directly onto secondary packaging reduces waste from unnecessary separate labelling and safety leaflets applied onto – or inside – finished packaging products.
Similarly, implementing QR codes onto bottles, containers, blister packaging and more allows manufacturers to provide important information to users and minimise excess materials without compromising on critical patient safety requirements.
Attention has recently shifted to plastic waste and its damaging impact on global environments and public health. However, plastic is currently the most popular material used in pharma packaging because of the nature of many products, which need to be heavily protected against shock, puncturing, vibration, tearing and changes in heat and humidity.
To find a more sustainable solution, research into biodegradable plastics and recyclable bioplastics are increasing with the goal of mass application.
Astellas Pharma, for example, made waves switching to sugarcane-derived blister packaging in 2021 – a world first for biomass-based plastic for blister packages. Plant-based materials made up 50 percent of the raw materials used in its development while still providing the same protection function and usability for consumers.
The move to biomass-based materials could prove more common in the coming years as technologies evolve and consumer demand for sustainable alternatives grows.