Demand for aseptic packaging in the U.S. is projected to expand 8% per year to $5.1 billion in 2015, well above the overall packaging average, according to a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland, OH-based industry market research firm.  

Growth will be driven by drug sterility requirements and ambient distribution and storage advantages for food and beverages, according to the report. Specifically, the increasing availability of biotechnology-based injectable drugs necessitates aseptic filling and packaging as such drugs tend to be heat sensitive, making the high heat used in terminal sterilization processes unfeasible.

The shelf stability of aseptic packaging will fuel rapid growth in dairy-based beverages and other dairy products as it enables these perishable products to move through the supply chain unrefrigerated. Advances will be moderated by the high capital investment of aseptic processing equipment and the reluctance of food and beverage firms to shift away from highly efficient hot-fill and retort processing operations.

Pharmaceuticals were the largest aseptic packaging market in 2010, accounting for 64% of the total. Through 2015, demand is forecast to advance 8.4% annually to $3.4 billion, reflecting the broadening availability and consumption of biotechnology-based drugs, and aseptic filling requirements with other liquid pharmaceuticals. Additionally, opportunities will be driven by preferences among healthcare providers for unit-dose delivery formats. 

Growth for aseptic packaging in the beverage market will be restrained by the maturity of the fruit beverage market, expectation among U.S. consumers for chilled milk and competition from hot-fill packaging, which has a well-established base. Gains in the food market will be driven by shelf-stability advantages, as well as by expanding applications in liquid, low-particulate and pumpable foods, often via the replacement of metal cans and glass jars. 

The ongoing commercialization of biotechnology-based drugs will fuel above-average demand growth for aseptic vials and ampuls, and prefillable syringes, which are prevalent delivery systems for these drugs. Prefillable syringes will represent the fastest growing aseptic packaging product type through 2015, with demand projected to expand 11% yearly to $1.1 billion. Moreover, opportunities for aseptic prefillable syringes will benefit from safety and convenience advantages and the prevalence of chronic conditions necessitating lifetime drug regimens.