Staying Ahead in a Dynamic Market Environment
In a review of CPHI Frankfurt 2025, several event exhibitors chat about the trends making waves in the industry and highlight the importance of face-to-face collaborations and networking.
The latest edition of CPHI Frankfurt wrapped on Thursday Oct. 30, 2025 after welcoming approximately 62,000 visitors from over 166 countries, making it the largest ever CPHI event (1). Over 2,500 exhibitors attended the 36th iteration, a vast increase from the event’s humble beginnings back in 1990 when there were only 16 exhibitors.
At the 2025 event, the exhibitors, while sprawled out across the majority of Frankfurt Messe, were grouped into various zones ranging from contract manufacturing services to excipients and finished dosage formulation to bioproduction. During this year’s event, The Pharma Navigator connected with a selection of exhibitors to record some rapid-fire chats about the hottest and most talked about trends from the show floor (2).
Click above to listen to the full podcast episode or read on for a summary of the conversations…
Geopolitical risks
For Peter Freisler, Chief Business Officer for Siegfried — a global CDMO who were located in Hall 6.0 — the most prominent topic for discussion had been that of geopolitical risks and how to mitigate them. “I think it’s really important to have a partner in place with the supply network offering multiple supply points for the customers in order to reduce this risk of failed supply,” he emphasized.
This global multiple site approach is how Siegfried is helping customers to overcome potential supply issues, Freisler added. “We have multiple sites on the drug substance side and also on the drug product side,” he said. “In total, we have 13 sites across the globe, and here we can really support our customers to mitigate risk, offering multiple supply points.”
Over in Hall 9.1, Roger Viney, Chief Commercial Officer of ICE Pharma — the bile acid experts — also found the majority of chatter from the floor centering around the current political situation. “I think there’s a lot of impact of politics at the moment, obviously the political situation in America, the politicization of the FDA, I think that’s having an impact,” he remarked.
Many people within industry are seeking domestic services as a result of these political concerns, Viney continued. “I mean, that trend a little bit of making sure that supply chains are secure, not depending on one area,” he said.
Importance of Sustainability
Another key topic that has been rumbling around the CPHI event show floors for several years now, and is prominent in the conference agenda too, is that of sustainability. This topic is of high importance for ICE Pharma, which has featured a truly sustainable booth, made of cardboard, over the past three CPHI events.
“[Our booth] is made completely of cardboard,” explained Viney, “which sounds a bit odd, but it’s actually a material that’s very comfortable! Our booth is a kind of modular construction of cardboard, which we’ve reused for three years. [The booth] is genuinely sustainable and it’s also been good fun to [build].”
Moving over to Hall 8.0 and Minna Laitinen, Chief Commercial Officer at Nordic Bioproducts Group, revealed how her company is contributing to improved sustainability. “So, our company is Nordic Bioproducts Group, which is a Finnish company, spun out from Aalto University — the main university in Helsinki — where they developed a completely new way of producing microcrystalline cellulose (MCC) in a more sustainable way,” she specified.
“Traditionally, MCC production uses quite a lot of water and energy, and often is produced in batches,” Laitinen continued. “Our process uses 95% less water, 90% less energy, and 69% less chemicals. So, it’s a huge difference in the carbon footprint when we think of our customers as well, and the other aspect is that we can produce MCC continuously.”
Investing in Drug Delivery
For Vetter (located in Hall 6.0), CPHI Frankfurt offered a useful platform to evaluate the best innovations for investment so that patient outcomes are improved and evolving customer expectations are met in the changing bio/pharma landscape, emphasized Gregor Deutschle — who is Director Product and Service Management for the company.
“At CPHI, we’re closely watching trends around advanced drug delivery devices and personalized medicine, which are reshaping how therapies are administered and tailored to individual needs,” Deutschle said. “Innovations like on-body injectors and large volume auto injectors are gaining traction as self-administration and patient-centric solutions become more prominent.”
A Personal Experience
The best part of CPHI is the personal interaction and being able to meet face-to-face with global customers, Deutschle commented. “It’s also a valuable opportunity to stay connected with industry peers, exchange insights and observe how competitors are positioning themselves,” he summarizes. “The show reinforces the importance of community collaboration and staying ahead in a dynamic market environment.”
References
Informa. Why CPHI? www.cphi.com/europe, accessed Nov. 5, 2025.
The Pharma Navigator. Staying Ahead in a Dynamic Market Environment — CPHI Frankfurt 2025 Review. All Points of the Pharma Compass, Podcast, Episode #1, Nov. 6, 2025.
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