Business Drivers/Specialty: Page 508
The contract packaging industry has no shortage of opportunities and
challenges, and some of them were discussed formally and informally at
the Contract Packaging Association’s annual meeting, which concluded
April 2 in Tucson, AZ.
First, the opportunities. One of the hottest segments of contract
packaging today is pharmaceutical products, and it’s promising even
more growth for co-packers with the right facilities, capabilities, and
certification approvals. Speaking to association members, Bill
Sharpless said the $400 billion pharma industry is growing at 3%
annually. Sharpless is marketing director of pharmaceutical, cosmetic,
and medical packaging at Alcoa Flexible Packaging. April 17, 2007
Within a matter of days, important new data sets will be available in
the U.S. LCI (Life Cycle Inventory) Database. The data will include all
steps from “cradle to resin” for nine common plastic resins (HDPE,
LDPE, LLDPE, PP, HIPS, GPPS, PVC, ABS, PET) and two polyurethane
polyols. These materials are commonly used in packaging systems as well
as in durable products (for example, building products such as
insulation). April 17, 2007
