Babies and toddlers up to three years of age often require daily administration of 400–600 international units (I.E.) of Vitamin D. Considering the product’s frequent use, this makes practical, simple administration all the more important.
Hoffmann Neopac, a provider of packaging for a broad array of industries and applications, partnered with Streuli Pharma AG to launch a dropper tube for direct, precision administering of Vitamin D. The packaging system houses Vitamin D in a tube with a metered dropper, resulting in safer, more accurate dosages.
For 150 years, Streuli has produced medicines for the Swiss pharmaceutical market. The company had the idea for a precise dropper mechanism to simplify Vitamin D dosage for young children, so it tapped Neopac as a partner.
The innovative dropper system dispenses droplets individually by applying light pressure to the tube. Each drop is designed to contain 200 I.E. of Vitamin D, which would allow easy dosage of both 400 and 600 I.E., according to age phase. The glass-free packaging of D3 piccolo is meant to be directly inserted into the mouth, and it also makes the package more transportable.
Using Neopac’s Polyfoil 19mm dropper tube with screw cap, the solution features a special insert on the dropper mechanism designed for liquid, serums, or oily content. This is used to ensure accurate dosing by adjusting the mechanism to the proper bulk texture for ideal drop size.
“Streuli’s vision for a safe dosage application of Vitamin D came to fruition during our collaboration,” says Martina Christiansen, Head of Sales and Marketing Pharma of Hoffmann Neopac. “The dropper tube in conjunction with Polyfoil technology created an innovative final product that can revolutionize the manner in which Vitamin D is administered to young children.”
Polyfoil is a proprietary blend of materials made to provide advanced barrier properties for products requiring ample protection against potentially harmful external factors, including moisture and oxygen. Products housed in Polyfoil solutions are designed to have longer shelf lives compared to those stored in conventional polyethylene or polypropylene packaging, according to the company.
During the collaboration, Neopac saw a need to reconfigure the cap because after the first filling test, the original cap’s fine nozzle risked overtightening the drop thread—an issue exacerbated by the tube’s length. Now, the modified dropper tube is meant to optimize the dosage unit capable of precision administration.
The solution made its market debut in spring 2019, and consumer feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, according to Hoffmann Neopac.
“We have been working with Neopac for two years on this product, and our collaboration has been extremely productive,” said Rebekka Richartz, Marketing Leader, Human at Streuli Pharma AG. “By jointly developing the Vitamin D dropper tube, we have simplified the administration process for parents, making dosages safer and more precise.”
