GlossaryEN1 min readUpdated: Jun 18, 2026
Pharmaceutical goods in refrigerated containers
Once pharmaceutical products leave the manufacturing site, they enter a tightly regulated cold chain: refrigerated containers – typically set to +2 to +8 °C – must sustain that range throughout sea, air, or road transit.
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Source: https://health.ec.europa.eu/medicinal-products/good-distribution-practice_en
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Once pharmaceutical products leave the manufacturing site, they enter a tightly regulated cold chain: refrigerated containers – typically set to +2 to +8 °C – must sustain that range throughout sea, air, or road transit. The governing framework combines EU Good Distribution Practice (GDP) guidelines with national medicines regulations, requiring continuous data logger records, qualified transport equipment, and defined deviation procedures. Freight forwarders handling pharma shipments carry a heightened documentation burden: every temperature excursion must be logged, assessed, and communicated to the consignee. Unlike standard chilled goods such as fresh produce, pharmaceuticals tolerate only narrow temperature bands – even brief excursions can render entire batches unfit for use. For highly sensitive products such as biologics or mRNA vaccines, deep-freeze containers operating down to −80 °C are required.
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