Growth Opportunities for Nanoencapsulation

Technology Developments Pave Way for New Product Formulations Across Pharma, Personal Care and F&B Industries

Nanoencapsulation embeds nanoparticles of solid, liquid, or gas, which are known as actives into a secondary shell material. The shell and core, also known as a nanoencapsulated system, is targeted to be delivered at a specific region to offer controlled release of the active in achieving specific end applications. Nanoencapsulation has been considered to be a promising approach to deliver active pharmaceutical ingredients to treat diseases in the healthcare industry. However, due to the pertinent drawbacks of microencapsulation, which include lack of bioavailability and targeted action, encapsulation at a nanoscale helps design and formulate new cosmetic ingredients, functional foods and beverages and anti-microbial textiles. Moreover, in the covid-19 pandemic crisis, companies and universities are exploring a wide range of personal protective gear, hand cleaners, and sanitizers with the aid of nanoencapsulation.

Biodegaradable nanocapsules, such as plant-carbohydrate, plant-protein based and plant-lipid based nanocarriers have already been investigated to enable further penetration of nanoencapsulation into new consumer segments. However, industrial segments such as the energy, automotive and construction spaces have also showcased interest towards the technology. Nanoencapsulation offers benefits, such as better core material protection from degradation, smaller sizes and thinner membranes yield greater bioavailability and efficacy and so on. However, the cost factor of nanoencapsulation is still an issue and stakeholders are putting massive efforts to reduce manufacturing costs. New nanoencapsulated systems such as liposomes, nanocomposites and nanogels enable customizable properties.