Sanofi to Help Fill and Pack the Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine and More News

Top headlines in the community of pharmaceutical packaging keep you up to date on what’s happening now.

Sanofi to Help Fill and Pack the Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine

To help meet intense global demand for coronavirus vaccines, French pharmaceutical manufacturer Sanofi plans to fill and package a competitor’s COVID-19 vaccine.

On January 27, 2021, Sanofi and BioNTech entered into an agreement whereby Sanofi will support the manufacturing and supply of BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine, which it co-developed with Pfizer.

Starting this summer, Sanofi will perform late-stage manufacturing and packaging at its facility in Frankfurt, Germany, to supply more than 125 million doses of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for the European Union.

Paul Hudson, Sanofi CEO, said in a statement: “We have made the decision to support BioNTech and Pfizer in manufacturing their COVID-19 vaccine in order to help address global needs, given that we have the technology and facilities to do so. As always, our top priority is to focus our efforts and capabilities on fighting this global pandemic. First and foremost, we will do this by continuing to develop our own COVID-19 vaccines candidates, in parallel with this industrial cooperation.”

Sanofi has two vaccine projects in the works:

• The vaccine Sanofi has developed with US firm Translate Bio is poised to enter Phase 1/2 trials in the next couple months.

• The vaccine the French company is creating with Britain’s GlaxoSmithKline has been delayed due to a low immune response in older adults. However, the vaccine is still expected to launch by the end of this year.

Pharmaceutical Packaging Market to be Worth $118 Billion in 5 Years

Increasing regulations, COVID-19, nanotechnology, population health management, and the growth of biologics are among the main trends in pharmaceuticals that are driving strong growth in packaging for this sector. In the next five years, an 8% compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) is expected, pushing the value of the market to $118 billion by 2026, according to new research from Research and Markets.

Key insights:

“…Glass bottles are expected to occupy a significant share by volume, driven by an increasing number of applications in both solid and liquid oral medications, as containers provide convenience, safety, and security.”

Additionally: “The increasing demand for injectable pharmaceuticals is significantly driving the growth of glass bottles. The robust demand for oncology and other high-potency drugs (such as antibody conjugates, steroids, and IV fluids that require quick onset of action) is expected to be the key growth driver.”

“Major factors driving the North American pharmaceutical packaging market’s growth include the contribution of nanotechnology advancement in manufacturing processes and technological innovation, growing demand for drug delivery devices, and blister packaging to the pharmaceutical packaging market.”

Additionally: “The United States will continue to be the largest national pharmaceutical packaging market as its advanced drug-producing sector commercializes new sophisticated therapies with specialized packaging needs. Advances in pharmaceutical packaging in the country are focused on improving the barrier properties of the packaging material.”

Rosenthal to Direct ProMach’s Pharma Business Marketing

Adam Rosenthal is now leading the marketing “strategies and initiatives” of ProMach’s packaging machinery for the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, biopharmaceutical, and personal care markets. ProMach’s Pharma business line consists of the NJM, WLS, and Pharmaworks product brands.

Rosenthal steps into this newly created Director of Pharma Marketing role at ProMach with 18 years of experience with pharmaceutical packaging equipment, including a variety of roles at Syntegon (formerly Bosch Packaging Technology) where he lastly had been Director of Supply Chain, IT, and Marketing.

Contract Packager Specializes in Small-Batch Production

The rise of personalized medicines and orphan drugs has created a demand for shorter runs. Based in Northern Ireland, pharmaceutical packaging and machinery company Sepha sees this as an opportunity. It has opened a new contract packaging service for the pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, and medical device industries that focuses on cost-effective, low volume runs of blister and medical device packs within short turnarounds.

Package Redesign Strengthens Supplement’s Natural Image

Natural ingredient supplement maker NB Pure (formerly Nutritional Brands) has rebranded with a new name, logo, website, and packaging design. Danna Pratte, CEO of NB Pure, says, “We want to become the most well-known health and wellness brand in the natural space, and an elevated packaging design and rebrand is step one in achieving that goal.”

New easy-to-read and color-coded labels are designed to catch the attention of customers perusing the highly competitive supplements aisle. The bright colors also serve a functional purpose to help differentiate between their products.