Vitafoods Europe 2019: Sustainability, connectivity key drivers in nutraceutical packaging, says Bormioli Pharma

09 May 2019 --- Bormioli Pharma has unveiled a new range of sustainable packaging solutions for the nutraceutical industry, spanning from bio-based solutions to fully recyclable options. The company launched the selection at Vitafoods Europe, which is currently taking place in Geneva, Switzerland. Speaking to PackagingInsights at the show, Massimo Annaratone, Sales Director, highlights how visibility, portability, connectivity and sustainability are key drivers in packaging for pharma and nutraceuticals.

Precision and safety are key when it comes to administering nutraceuticals, and packaging is a core part in ensuring such safety for consumers. As evidenced by Bormioli Pharma, some of the major drivers of the wider packaging industry, such as sustainability and connectivity, have also reached this space.

Massimo Annaratone, Sales Director, Bormioli Pharma.Covering the sustainability pillar, the pharmaceutical packaging company has developed a new bottle made from 100 percent food-grade recycled PET (rPET) bottle, touted as featuring the same performances of its virgin counterpart (PET). The high quality of Bormioli Pharma’s post-consumer recycled PET makes it transformable in the same manner as virgin PET, allowing the creation of a highly-customized solution according to customer needs, the company notes.

In addition, the company has manufactured Green polyethylene (PE) bottles – made with 100 percent bio-based plastic – and BioPET containers, which include 30 percent material from renewable sources. They were also exhibiting PLA dosing accessories, which fully degrade within 60 days at industrial compost facilities. These sustainable solutions were presented alongside the glass bottles, which the company promotes as being endlessly recyclable.

“Sustainability is the most attractive pillar to our customers. They are looking to plastic with a critical eye and they want to contribute to a better environment. Bormioli has been working for years on new solutions where we seek to close the loop in the circular economy. We have the best PET recyclable in terms of transparency and performance,” Annaratone says.

Keeping the portability pillar in mind, the company was also showcasing its dual-chamber solutions at the show. These packaging systems include two separated chambers, cap and bottle, one containing powdered active excipients and the other a liquid solvent. The consumer can easily reconstitute the product simply by screwing down the cap and shaking the bottle: A ready-to-use packaging delivery system suited for on-the-go use. 

Nutraceutical products are typically based on organic and natural excipients, which are more sensitive to interactions with external agents such as humidity, oxygen and light. From a primary packager point of view, packaging should be designed to ensure product stability and improve the shelf-life.

Annaratone also notes that in some global locations, clean water may be an issue. With a dual-chamber solution, the liquid and solid aspects are kept separate. In this way, the two solutions are kept separate until the moment of consumption, where they are then mixed in the right measurements. 

EasyRec dual-chamber for probiotics and
food supplements. “This ensures safety to the manufacturer in that the product won’t be spoiled by a raw material, such as unclean water. It also preserves the benefit of the drug and the quality of the raw material,” he adds.

Pack to the future?
Connectivity is also attracting the attention of Bormioli Pharma, both in terms of transparency and user-friendliness, shares Annaratone. “Connectivity is growing. People want to know where their products are coming from and its origins. With connectivity and smartphones, this is doable. Consumers are more connected now and they want to know more about their products. Transparency is really working behind the scenes of connectivity.”

“This is also a space for other methods where, for example, packaging could have instructions on how the product should be taken. This could be informative to the consumer and assure the supplier that the product is being used correctly,” he tells PackagingInsights.

Connective packaging technologies have been pegged to have a “landmark” year. Industry experts have predicted that Near-Field Communication (NFC) and other connective packaging technologies are readying for full-scale deployments across multiple markets in 2019, due to increased cost-effectiveness and the standardization of connective mechanisms. 

Digitalization has already hit the pharmaceutical market. Last year, August Faller developed an intelligent and interactive pharmaceutical packaging prototype: a digitalized folding carton, coined “Medical Prescription,” which supports patient’s compliance with medication intake. 

By Laxmi Haigh, with additional reporting by Lucy Gunn