Pharmaceutical Secondary Packaging Market Overview
The global pharmaceutical secondary packaging market, valued at USD 7.6 billion in 2025, is projected to reach USD 8.2 billion in 2026 and USD 16.1 billion by 2035, with a 7.8% CAGR during the forecast period 2026 to 2035.
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On an average, around 50 drugs are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) annually. Further, studies indicate that more than 100,000 tons of pharmaceutical products are consumed globally per year. In addition, over the next five years, the global pharmaceutical market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.7%, with global drug sales anticipated to raise revenues worth USD 1.5 trillion in 2023. This continuously growing pipeline of pharmaceutical drug products has inadvertently led to an increase in the demand for their associated primary packaging and pharmaceutical secondary packaging solutions. Specifically, pharmaceutical secondary packaging is a vital step in the product supply chain as it encloses life-saving drugs and therapies, preserving the identity, quality, integrity and stability of the packaged drug product. It also plays a key role in marketing and brand projection for a product. However, the process of secondary packaging usually involves time consuming and complex activities, such as blister carding, thermoforming, labeling, kitting, assembly and cold chain storage (for temperature sensitive biologics). Other key challenges faced by developers are limiting variability in packaging materials and ensuring compliance to stringent regulatory guidelines (for packaging designs). Considering the aforementioned concerns, many pharmaceutical players now prefer to collaborate with qualified packaging providers that offer non-traditional packaging solutions and have the required capabilities to create unique packaging designs, in a cost and time effective manner.
As per the CDMO Outsourcing Survey conducted by Nice Insight, specifically for clinical and commercial scale operations, nearly 60% of the pharmaceutical companies currently outsource their primary packaging needs, while 43% of the players outsource their secondary packaging requirements. At present, more than 160 companies offer secondary packaging solutions to the firms engaged in the pharmaceutical sector. Further, several recent advancements in packaging designs, technologies and materials have enabled service providers to offer a wide range of user-friendly pharmaceutical secondary packaging solutions. In addition, substantial expansions, mergers and acquisitions, and partnerships have been reported in this market as service providers strive to become one-stop-shops, in order to cater to the diverse needs of their clients engaged in the healthcare industry. Driven by the ongoing innovation in pharmaceutical secondary packaging market, continuous growth in the pharmaceutical drugs pipeline and a steady rise in drug approvals, the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market is likely to witness positive market growth during the forecast period.
Key Companies in Pharmaceutical Secondary Packaging Market
Examples of key companies engaged in pharmaceutical secondary packaging market (which have also been profiled in this market report; the complete list of companies is available in the full report) include Catalent, Patheon (By Thermo Fisher Scientific), PCI Pharma Services, Pfizer CentreOne, Sharp, Almac Group, Central Pharma, CordenPharma, Eurofins CDMO, Tjoapack, ABS (Australian Blister Sealing), Bushu Pharma, CMIC, Kishore group and Prince Art Packages. This market report includes an easily searchable excel database of all the companies engaged in pharmaceutical secondary packaging market, worldwide.
Recent Developments in Pharmaceutical Secondary Packaging Market:
Several recent developments have taken place in the field of pharmaceutical secondary packaging. We have outlined some of these recent initiatives below. These developments, even if they took place post the release of our market report, substantiate the overall market trends that have been outlined in our analysis.
- In April 2026, Mech i tronic acquired and integrated Rotzinger Pharmapack, a specialist in pharmaceutical packaging, to strengthen its expertise and expand its product portfolio in the pharmaceutical secondary packaging segment.
- In December 2025, Tjoapack announced the opening of a new facility in Tennessee, US, featuring GMP-compliant high-speed lines for secondary packaging formats, including bottles, blisters.
- In November 2025, Smurfit Westrock announced the opening of new facility dedicated to pharmaceutical patient medication adherence and clinical trials. Notably, the facility provides full-service secondary packaging solutions, including cold chain testing and electronics assembly for smart packaging, to enhance speed-to-market for global pharmaceutical clients and improve patient dosing compliance.
- In April 2025, Amcor announced the merger with Berry Global, aimed to expand its secondary packaging portfolio, particularly in North American polyethylene shrink films and labels.
Scope of the Report
The ‘Pharmaceutical Secondary Packaging Market – Distribution by Type of Secondary Packaging (Boxes, Cartons and Pouches), Type of Primary Packaging Packed (Ampoules, Blister Packs, Bottles, Cartridges, Syringes and Vials) and Key Geographies (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, MENA, Latin America, and Rest of the World): Industry Trends and Global Forecasts, Till 2035’ market report features an extensive study of the current market landscape, market size, market forecast and future opportunities for the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market. The market research report features an in-depth analysis, highlighting the capabilities of pharmaceutical secondary packaging providers.
| Key Report Attributes |
Details |
| Forecast Period |
Till 2035 |
| Market Size 2026 |
$ 8.2 Billion |
| Market Size 2035 |
$ 16.1 Billion |
| CAGR (Till 2035) |
7.8% |
|
Type of Secondary Packaging
|
|
|
Type of Primary Packaging Packed
|
- Ampoules
- Blister Packs
- Bottles
- Cartridges
- Syringes
- Vials
|
|
Geographical Region
|
- North America
- Europe
- Asia-Pacific
- Middle East and North Africa
- Latin America
|
Amongst other elements, the market research report features:
- A detailed overview of the overall landscape of companies offering secondary packaging solutions to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, along with information on several relevant parameters, such as their year of establishment, company size (in terms of employee count), location of headquarters (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific and rest of the world) and scale of operation (preclinical, clinical and commercial). The chapter also covers details related to the type of service provider (one-stop-shop service providers and stand-alone service providers), types of packaging (secondary packaging offered (cartons, boxes and others), type of primary packaging packed (blisters, vials, bottles, conventional syringes, ampoules, prefilled syringes and others)), type of molecule packed (biologics, small molecules and unspecified), type of finished dosage form packed (solids, liquids / injectables, semi-solids, powders and others) and type of additional service(s) offered (labeling, serialization, kitting and cold-chain storage).
- An insightful competitiveness analysis of the pharmaceutical secondary packaging providers, based on supplier power (in terms of years of experience), company competitiveness (type packaging offered (primary and secondary), type of molecule packed, type of finished dosage form packed, and type of additional services offered) and their respective scale of operation.
- An analysis of recent partnerships inked between stakeholders engaged in pharmaceutical secondary packaging market, since 2018, covering acquisitions, manufacturing and packaging agreements, service alliances, packaging agreements, distribution agreements, technology utilization agreements and other related agreements. Further, the partnership activity in pharmaceutical secondary packaging market has been analyzed based on various parameters, such as year of partnership, type of partnership, type of molecule packed, type of finished dosage form packed and most active players (in terms of number of partnerships). It also highlights the regional distribution of the partnership activity witnessed in this market.
- A detailed analysis of the recent expansions undertaken by various pharmaceutical secondary packaging providers, based on several relevant parameters, such as year of expansion, type of expansion (capacity expansion, facility expansion and new facility), scale of operation, type of primary packaging packed, type of molecule packed, type of finished dosage form packed, company size, location of headquarters, location of expanded facility, most active players (in terms of number of recent expansions) and geographical distribution (region-wise and country-wise).
- An in-depth analysis to estimate the current and future demand for pharmaceutical secondary packaging, based on several relevant parameters, such as types of packaging (secondary packaging (boxes, cartons and pouches), type of primary packaging packed (ampoules, blister packs, bottles, cartridges, syringes and vials)) and key geographical regions (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, MENA, Latin America and rest of the world), for the period, till 2035.
- Elaborate profiles of prominent players (shortlisted based on a proprietary criterion) engaged in offering pharmaceutical secondary packaging solutions, across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. Each profile provides an overview of the company, featuring information on the year of establishment, number of employees, location of their headquarters, key executives, details related to its secondary packaging offerings, recent developments, and an informed future outlook
One of the key objectives of this market report is to provide a detailed market forecast analysis in order to estimate the existing market size and future opportunity associated with the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market, during the forecast period. We have provided an informed estimates of the likely evolution of the market in the short to mid-term and long term, for the forecast period, till 2035. Our year-wise projections of the current and future opportunity have further been segmented based on relevant parameters, such as [A] type of secondary packaging (boxes, cartons and others), [B] type of primary packaging packed (ampoules, blister packs, bottles, cartridges, prefilled syringes and pharmaceutical vials) and [C] key geographical regions (North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, MENA, Latin America and rest of the world). To account for future uncertainties in the market and to add robustness to our model, we have provided three market forecast scenarios, portraying the conservative, base and optimistic tracks of the market’s evolution.
The opinions and insights presented in the market report were also influenced by discussions held with senior stakeholders in the industry. The market research report features detailed transcripts of interviews held with the following individuals:
- Commercial Director, Small Company, United Kingdom
- Managing Director, Small Company, Italy
- Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Mid-sized Company, USA
Frequently Asked Questions
Question 1: What is pharmaceutical secondary packaging?
Answer: Pharmaceutical secondary packaging refers to the packaging material which is present outside the primary packaging of a drug.
Question 2: How big is the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market?
Answer: The pharmaceutical secondary packaging market size is currently estimated to be worth $ 8.2 billion.
Question 3: What is the projected market growth of the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market?
Answer: The pharmaceutical secondary packaging market is expected to grow at compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.8% during the forecast period.
Question 4: Who are the leading companies in the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market?
Answer: Examples of key companies engaged in pharmaceutical secondary packaging market (which have also been profiled in this market report; the complete list of companies is available in the full report) include Catalent, Patheon (By Thermo Fisher Scientific), PCI Pharma Services, Pfizer CentreOne, Sharp, Almac Group, Central Pharma, CordenPharma, Eurofins CDMO, Tjoapack, ABS (Australian Blister Sealing), Bushu Pharma, CMIC, Kishore group and Prince Art Packages.
Question 5: How many companies are presently engaged in the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market?
Answer: Currently, over 160 companies are engaged in the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market.
Question 6: What is the potential cost saving for outsourcing pharmaceutical secondary packaging activities?
Answer: Outsourcing pharmaceutical secondary packaging activities can save up to 7%-9% in the overall cost of drug packaging.
Question 7: Which region is the hub for companies engaged in the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market?
Answer: Europe emerged as the hub for companies engaged in the pharmaceutical secondary packaging market, with over 50% of the players established in the region.
