Cold Chain In 2021: COVID-19's Continued Influence

By Dave Williams, President of Pelican BioThermal

As we eagerly enter 2021 and prepare this year’s cold chain industry predictions, we reflect on the events of 2020. Nowhere leading into the year did we predict a global pandemic. Yet its impact crosses all facets of business, causing companies to pivot and adapt. Some were able to harness new opportunities to serve our ever-changing way of life and others struggle to stay the course.

The pharmaceutical and cold chain industries were pushed this previous year to innovate through vaccine development, temperature-controlled packages that met the needs of new deep frozen vaccine storage and increased demand for existing products. They rose to the challenge, working in unprecedented ways to make 2021 a brighter year.

Though there is hope for more normalcy in 2021, COVID-19 will continue to drive business operations. This is certainly true for pharmaceutical and cold chain companies. Our three predictions below all show how COVID-19’s influence persists, and in some instances, may have a long-term ripple effect.