Pharmaceutical Packaging Market

The pharmaceutical industry is growing at a rapid pace in emerging economies. Advanced manufacturing processes, technological innovations, and increased integration of companies have resulted in the industry's rapid growth, thus driving the pharmaceutical packaging market. Emerging economies such as Brazil, Russia, India, and China will likely witness remarkable growth. The market in certain countries is experiencing growth due to rising income levels and increased awareness about the benefits of good healthcare systems and healthier lifestyles. The key drivers of this growth are the large population (particularly the increasing young population) and higher life expectancy. The US has the largest pharmaceutical market globally, followed by China. The rapidly increasing elderly population and its corresponding need for medical assistance are supporting the market's growth in the country. The Indian pharmaceuticals market has grown significantly in the last two decades, driven by the increasing production of generic drugs. According to Invest India, the country constitutes around 20% of the global generics supply and 62% of the vaccine demand.

According to a WHO report, nearly half of the global population is unable to afford the required healthcare services. Emerging economies are likely to play a vital role in market growth. Increasing population and attractive demographics serve as growth drivers for the pharmaceutical industry in these markets. This provides high growth opportunities for leading pharmaceutical companies experiencing issues pertaining to the stagnancy of markets, stringent regulatory policies, and patent expiry. However, poverty, lack of appropriate infrastructure, low literacy rate, and prevalence of unorganized healthcare systems in emerging economies are restraining market growth. In India, most of the population still suffers due to poor healthcare quality and lack of access. According to an article by India Today, the rate of maternal mortality during childbirth in private hospitals is approximately 3.84%. Also, the health worker density in India is approximately 23 per 10,000 people. In China, primary healthcare services continue to face suboptimal conditions. Poverty is a major barrier to accessing healthcare facilities in emerging economies. Financial constraints, lack of information, outdated equipment, lack of proper staff, and awareness of appropriate healthcare practices are the major challenges that limit access to healthcare services. These issues restrain the growth of the pharmaceutical packaging market in India, Brazil, South Africa, and other emerging economies.

Primary pharmaceutical packaging products come in direct contact with the medicine or drug. They mainly include plastic bottles, glass bottles, prefilled syringes, prefilled inhalers, medication tubes, and blister packaging. The major contributors to the growth of this segment are prefillable syringes and prefillable inhalers. Plastic bottles, blister packs, and ampoules & vials are also some of the primary pharmaceutical packaging products that are growing rapidly. Advancements in biotechnology are driving demand for high-visibility unit dosage packaging, particularly for injectable parenteral therapies used to treat diseases like diabetes. Growth of the inhalers segment is expected to be supported by the rising number of chronic asthma, allergy, and migraine patients treated with inhalation drugs. Primary packaging is also growing due to the advent of biologics and other specialty drugs. Biologics require specialized packaging to avoid contamination and leaching. It needs to be flexible to encompass the packaging of biology and grow in the ready-to-use pharma products segment. Increased spending and R&D in self-medication drugs and biologics are expected to boost the demand for primary packaging globally. Biologics are mostly used through prefilled syringes, which provide a significant opportunity for the packaging type to grow soon. In addition, a rise in the use of the self-medication approach is also projected to boost the consumption of biologics and PFS globally.

Counterfeit drugs are made with incorrect ingredients in inappropriate quantities, which, when consumed, would result in harmful effects such as allergic reactions or sometimes death. According to the Pharmaceutical-technology website, counterfeit drugs amount to a valuation of USD 200 billion per year. Nearly half of the counterfeit drugs are reported in emerging economies such as China, the Philippines, and Vietnam, followed by Africa with 18.7% and Europe with 13.6%, as per the WHO. According to the CDC, 10% to 30% of medicines sold in emerging economies are counterfeit. Anti-malarial and antibiotics are among the most counterfeited medical products. WHO is constantly taking initiatives against counterfeiters by setting new standards for drug packaging. All activities related to drug serialization that evolve in different countries are backed by global initiatives managed by the WHO. The governments of developed and emerging economies are implementing stringent legislation, such as the US Code 2320, for tracking counterfeit products and related acts to prevent the counterfeiting of pharmaceutical products.