Spotlight on pharma packaging: COVID-19 spurs digital labeling and hygiene innovation

08 Sep 2021 --- Pharmaceutical packaging has seen a boom in demand and innovation throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, with lockdown restrictions and increasing hygiene concerns compounding this already complex field of packaging. 

The demand for designs that cater to disabled consumers and easily communicate important medical information puts pressure on manufacturers, with industry producing a wide range of innovations during the pandemic. 

PackagingInsights speaks with industry experts, including labeling specialist Avery Dennison and consumer packaging giant Mondi about how the COVID-19 pandemic has altered the pharmaceutical packaging landscape for good.

We also zone in on recent NPD, which has made strides toward improving the environmental footprint of medical packaging through plastic reductions. 

New generation of medicines
A new wave of therapies has created a need for packaging and labeling suitable for unprecedented medicines, explains Avery Dennison’s international business leader, Benoît Jourde. 

“A vast majority of these types of medicines are highly sensitive to temperatures and come in the form of viscous liquid. This means that very often they have to be stored in temperatures below 0°C and come in containers suitable for injection, like prefilled syringes.”RFID labeling tracks medical products through cloud software.

In turn, this has created unique requirements for labeling materials that have to withstand application and storage in negative temperatures and be suitable for application on small diameter, single-dose containers, he explains. 

COVID-19 labeling changes 
Jourde explains the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has acted as a catalyst on pre-existing labeling technologies, which have now become essential for delivering needed medical products around the world. 

“COVID-19 accelerated the adoption of RNA-based vaccines and brought the cold chain to the mainstream and at the same time so called cryogenic labels that traditionally were a niche application targeting clinical trials,” continues Jourde.

“Another important and lasting impact of the pandemic is the accelerated adoption of intelligent labels into pharmaceutical and healthcare products. The distress put on supply chains, and increased risks of counterfeiting and medicine falsification highlighted the need for transparent and secure value chains.”

One essential answer to these problems has been Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) enabled labels for product tracking. Avery Dennison has been using RFIDs for a number of years, and expanded its portfolio in 2018 to target the healthcare sector specifically.

RFID’s power and digital labeling 
Gabriela Gregor, product manager of pharmaceuticals at Avery Dennison.Given the increased risks highlighted by the pandemic, Gabriela Gregor, product manager of pharmaceuticals at Avery Dennison, explains RFID technology provides end-to-end transparency with item tracking solutions. “This increases patient safety, transparency, accuracy, visibility and security, starting at the point of manufacture,” she says.

“RFID labels and connected pharma packaging for better patient care are getting more in focus. Connected devices and wearables can help improve patient care and patient experience. This helps reduce medical errors by eliminating human errors and helps ensure that medication is correct and safe to use.” 

Another strength of RFID is its ability to obtain unique insights on the product journey thanks to the data that is stored in the cloud, she continues. 

“Avery Dennison has developed a back-end platform that supports managing unique digital identifications assigned to pharmaceutical products in its Atma.io connected cloud.” 

Stepping in for testing 
Given the urgency created by the pandemic, some industry players ventured outside their traditional focus to aid the pharmaceutical industry in providing test kits to the public. Mondi, for example, aided German molecular diagnostic company Qiagen with packaging for its syndromic test cartridge kit. 

Qiagen’s QIAstat-Dx Analyser System can identify the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus within an hour. Mondi – who has an ongoing relationship with Qiagen – designed customized packs for the test kits. 

Composed of white, unprinted, multilayer pouches made with polyester, aluminum and polyethylene (PE), the packs provide necessary protection from light and moisture so the test kits are not compromised before they are used.

“Given that timely testing is a critical component of mitigating the spread of the pandemic, we stand ready to assist the medical community in any way we can. We adjusted our production planning in order to meet the increase in demand to support Qiagen,” explains Eveline Wagner, managing director of Mondi Korneuburg.

Qiagen’s QIAstat-Dx Analyser System packaged by Mondi.In a similar development, US-based Aptar CSP created Activ-Film technology, protective packaging for two at-home COVID-19 tests. The tests received Emergency Use Authorization from the US Food and Drug Administration. 

The company spoke to PackagingInsights earlier this year about how it leveraged its current platform to create a specially formulated Activ-Film solution to address specific requirements for the COVID-19 test in an expedited way.

Blister pack developments 
Meanwhile, the pharmaceutical packaging industry has seen a slew of innovations aimed at slashing plastic usage and reducing carbon emissions associated with blister packaging for pills. 

In April, Amcor launched customer trials for a new mono-material, recyclable PE blister pack. Branded AmSky, the packs eliminate polyvinyl chloride (PVC) – one of the materials that make recycling difficult due to its chlorine content. 

In July, US-based Keystone Folding Box reported a surge in demand for its paperboard-based blister packs from pharmaceutical companies in India. 

The company said the sales spike was due to new environmental sustainability legislation in India and increased demand for child-resistant pharma packaging in the US – to whom India supplies some 40 percent of packaged over-the-counter and prescription drugs. 

Recently, Klöckner Pentaplast launched kpNext, a blister pack marketed as the only recyclable PET blister completely compatible with pharmaceutical manufacturing form, fill and seal equipment. The company says the solution is suitable for curbside collection throughout the US, an issue facing many blister pack designs in the country. 

Suitability for recycling infrastructure is a common problem for blister packaging even outside the US. This year, TerraCycle launched the UK’s first blister recycling program with pharmacies around the country, through which consumers can drop off used packs for specialized recycling. 

By Louis Gore-Langton