Global Pharmaceutical Glass Packaging Market to Reach $25 Billion by 2026

Glass represents an unbeatable option as a packaging material supported by its superior attributes of sterility, reusability, chemical stability, durability, non-permeability, and malleability and by virtue of it being hygienic, eco-friendly, and aesthetically pleasing. With an unlimited recyclable life, glass ranks high on the parameters laid down for the environmentally most desired packaging type. For every ton of recycled glass, a ton of natural resources are saved, while one ton of carbon dioxide is prevented from entering the atmosphere with every six tons of container glass recycled.

Glass is the primary packaging materials used in pharmaceutical industry for packaging drugs and vaccines. The versatile nature of glass and the ability to mold glass into varied shapes, sizes and colors makes it useful in pharmaceutical packaging applications. Glass is also considered suited for sterilization purposes, possess superior barrier properties, and can be color to enhance its light sensitivity. Glass packaging helps in preserving the properties and protecting the contents. Glass is in fact the only material to be recognized as being generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the US FDA. Glass containers in the pharma industry are available in amber color or clean flint color. For sensitive pharma products such as parenteral drugs and blood products, glass vials and ampoules made of borosilicate glass are used. The choice of glass for packaging pharmaceutical formulations is mainly due to the inorganic or inert nature of the material, which on being heat up and cooled down leads to solidification without causing crystallization. The high melting point due to presence of silica remains a key advantage of glass.

Amid the COVID-19 crisis, the global market for Pharmaceutical Glass Packaging estimated at US$15.7 Billion in the year 2020, is projected to reach a revised size of US$25 Billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 7.9% over the analysis period. Bottles, one of the segments analyzed in the report, is projected to record a 6.1% CAGR and reach US$8.6 Billion by the end of the analysis period. After a thorough analysis of the business implications of the pandemic and its induced economic crisis, growth in the Vials segment is readjusted to a revised 8.6% CAGR for the next 7-year period.

The U.S. Market is Estimated at $5.2 Billion in 2021, While China is Forecast to Reach $3.7 Billion by 2026

The Pharmaceutical Glass Packaging market in the U.S. is estimated at US$5.2 Billion in the year 2021. China, the world`s second largest economy, is forecast to reach a projected market size of US$3.7 Billion by the year 2026 trailing a CAGR of 9.2% over the analysis period. Among the other noteworthy geographic markets are Japan and Canada, each forecast to grow at 6.8% and 7.3% respectively over the analysis period. Within Europe, Germany is forecast to grow at approximately 7.3% CAGR.

The market is primarily driven by the growing demand for secure packaging solutions in the pharmaceutical industry as well as the increased use of glass ampoules in generic injectable formulations. Ongoing product innovations and technological advancements have led to the introduction of several new products that are manufactured using advanced ion-exchange and glass chemistry processes, thereby resulting in the reduction of the surface friction coefficient and production of inherently-strong and damage-resistant glass. These improved products are expected to further propel the growth in the market in the coming years. In the past few years, the growing significance of cost sensitivity and biotech drugs in the healthcare industry has led to the implementation of strict regulations pertaining to products for drug delivery. This has resulted in significant investments from manufacturers of pharmaceutical glass packaging with the focus on developing products that can enhance the drug`s shelf life, which is further anticipated to drive the demand for pharmaceutical glass packaging in the next few years.

However, pharmaceutical glass packaging is expected to witness a stiff competition from plastic substitutes, such as polystyrene, low-density polyethylene, high-density polyethylene, and polyethylene terephthalate, for developing parenteral as well as non- parenteral containers. Concerns of particulate contamination, breakage, and delamination with glass packaging are also likely to continue impeding their widespread adoption for pharmaceutical products. While both plastic and glass can be recycled, glass has the limitation that it can be recycled back only into glass. In contrast, plastic has the benefit that it can be recycled for manufacturing various kinds of products, such as foam packaging, carpet filling, and plastic lumber. In recent years, glass packaging manufacturers and distributors are eyeing growth opportunities in emerging countries, such as Brazil, China, and India, particularly in the generics segment, and hence increasingly seeking to move their base to these countries. This trend is likely to augment growth in the pharmaceutical glass packaging market in these countries.