Pharma and biopharma supply chain - building resilience against geopolitical disruption
Pharmaceutical companies have always depended on supply chains to safeguard their products against delays or damage. In today’s volatile geopolitical landscape, that relationship has become even more important.
Across industries, corporate leaders rank geopolitics among the highest risks to business (90% of participants in Deloitte’s Spring 2025 European CFO Survey (1) put it in the top three). The Healthcare segment may be one of the most vulnerable to disruption. Pharmaceutical companies face increased risks of continuity loss, delayed market access, and compliance breaches – significantly impacting revenue and reputation.
How a crisis can damage revenue and reputation in pharmaceutical supply chain
The recent Red Sea shipping crisis exemplifies how disruptions can impact supply chains. With 30% of global container trade passing through the Suez Canal, attacks by Houthi rebels triggered rerouting around southern Africa, causing the prices of certain routes to increase five-fold, according to J.P. Morgan Research (2).
The impact of such disruptions on patient outcomes can be significant – from higher out-of-pocket costs to reduced quality of care as products become scarce. In response to stock-outs and other challenges, patients may shift to a competitor’s products, damaging revenue and product reputation.
Supply chain logistics must provide pharma and biotech companies with resilience against such risks. But navigating geopolitical disruptions – ranging from conflicts in the Middle East to trade disputes between the US and China – requires a shift from static supply chains to a model built on agility, local intelligence, and unwavering compliance.
Agility through multi-modal and alternative corridors
Geopolitical disruptions, such as closed airspaces or maritime risks, necessitate immediate route re-evaluations. Multi-modal logistics networks provide the agility to bypass bottlenecks:
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Rapid risk assessments
Every new route requires a rigorous GxP risk assessment – and swiftly, too, ensuring that agility does not come at the cost of quality. -
Dynamic resource allocation
In times of crisis, demand for specific transport (like GxP-approved trucks) spikes. The combination of global scale and local relationships provides access to reliable alternatives, reducing the effect on costs and lead times.
Strategic support for regionalization
The shift toward regionalised manufacturing – building production sites closer to end markets to avoid tariffs and trade restrictions – is a core trend in pharma.
At the same time, pharmaceutical manufacturing is growing rapidly in Asia, increasing the potential risk for supply chain disruptions for other regions. According to a 2026 article by McKinsey & Company (3), Asia contributed more than 85% of the global growth in innovative drug pipelines in 2024, “with China and South Korea leading the surge in new clinical assets.”
The active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) production has already grown massively in Asia (4). In 2024, the US accounted for just 3% of API Drug Master File (DMF) filings (down from 23% in the early 1980s), the European Union for 6% (down from 63% in 1981), while India was 43% and China 45% in 2024 (both were zero in 1981).
Global footprint, local execution:
DSV supports companies adopting "China for China" strategies or near-shoring by providing a consistent global standard of logistics across a complex array of local touchpoints.
Securing the API supply chain:
With many active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) concentrated in India and China, DSV helps manage the complex transit of these critical components to European or American production sites, providing a buffer against regional lockdowns or trade blocks.Local presence and intelligence during geopolitical risk in pharmaceutical supply chain
Automated systems are critical for effective end-to-end control. But in a crisis, digital tools often fail, shifting the burden even more onto human relationships. Contingency plans are only as successful as the people on the ground managing them. Robust supply chain logistics must have the capacity to shift seamlessly from digital monitoring to direct communications, collecting real-time intelligence from local offices to navigate emergencies.
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Border Intelligence
Local teams provide proactive updates on customs efficiency and border wait times (e.g., at crossings affected by conflicts in the Middle East or Ukraine), providing reliable data that helps inform e.g. whether shipments continue along slower land routes or opt for faster but more expensive air freight. -
Regulatory expertise
Every country has unique GxP and customs requirements. Local expertise anchored in competence centres ensures operations comply with the specific regulatory framework of each nation, which is essential for maintaining market access.
Zero-tolerance compliance
Supply chain logistics for pharma and biopharma products demand a zero-tolerance approach to deviating from Good Distribution Practice (GDP), even during major geopolitical disruptions.
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Non-negotiable quality
A crisis may cause delays, but the commitment to cargo integrity remains absolute, ensuring that cold chain standards (e.g., 2–8°C or 15–25°C) are never sacrificed for an alternative route. Advanced cold chain logistics – including the unique use of phase change materials (PCMs) for passive cooling – offers prolonged thermal protection.
Learn more about our cold chain logistics services -
Validated infrastructure
When a crisis occurs, companies face massive challenges if they need to set up alternative GxP operations from scratch. Well-established partnerships locally and globally become crucial: an expansive network of GxP-certified partners allows for rapid pivots when operations face sudden disruptions.
End-to-end visibility and control towers
Control towers maintain visibility and control over the operation during periods of high volatility:
Proactive intervention:
Real-time tracking through EDI interfaces and monitoring devices identifies temperature deviations or transit delays immediately, enabling proactive fixes before products are compromised.
Operational continuity:
In the event of a sudden disruption (the outbreak of conflict, airspace closure or similarly significant events), real-time monitoring provides visibility on all cargo in transit, allowing for instant replanning to mitigate delays or avoid standstills.Cases: Managing trade disruptions in the Middle East
On 28 February 2026, the United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran. Iran’s response included the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting global trade and affecting critical pharma and biotech shipments. The following examples from the 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis demonstrate how these five pillars – agility, regionalization, local presence and intelligence, zero-tolerance compliance, and E2E visibility – protected critical supply lines when standard operations failed.
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The shipment
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102-ton cargo of time-critical pharmaceuticals (446 pallets).
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High-value pharmaceuticals shipped in active containers at 2-8°C, moving from the US East Coast to Kuwait.
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10 temperature-controlled reefer containers of essential eye-care medicines originating from the EU.
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Challenges
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End-of-quarter sales deadline, leaving no tolerance for delays or supply chain interruptions.
Sudden airspace closures and flight cancellations.
Immediate bypass route is blocked by local border import limitations. -
Active containers are stuck at the arrival airport – risking a temperature excursion, potentially ruining the product.
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Cargo destined for the United Arab Emirates are stranded at sea with no clear routing, threatening a major inventory shortage that will interrupt patient treatment.
Immediate attempt to divert to Oman fails due to regional crisis.
The lack of a fixed destination can compromise reefer integrity and risks supply chain continuity.
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Solutions
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Local Business Continuity Plans (BCPs) activated.
DSV leverages longstanding relationship with airline to secure priority space.
Constant flow of information gives the customer uninterrupted visibility on the shipment. -
Local Business Continuity Plans (BCPs) activated.
DSV leverages its local, specialized pharmaceutical fleet – securely transferring the cargo to temperature-controlled vehicles. -
Local Business Continuity Plans (BCPs) activated.
DSV UAE bypasses the main-line vessel delays by coordinating directly with ocean carriers to find alternative entry points.
Using smaller feeder vessels, DSV restores control over the critical cargo.
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Outcomes
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Delivery in time for end-of-quarter deadline, capturing revenue that risked being lost.
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Product delivered safely and without temperature excursion.
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Continuity of care and revenue protection.
More complexity demands more resilience as pharma faces geopolitical risk in 2026
As the 2026 conflict over the Strait of Hormuz demonstrates, geopolitical disruptions will continue to be a top risk to pharma and biotech supply chains for the foreseeable future. Meanwhile, global trade relationships will continue to shift, triggering changes to traffic along key routes.
These are known challenges. But new risks will also emerge, only increasing complexity.
With increased complexity comes increased importance of a reliable, predictable supply chain. Only a supply chain partner with global scale, local presence, and the latest technological capabilities will be able to deliver the level of resilience required to adapt to emerging tensions.
Find out more about our Healthcare logistics solutions
Sources:
(1) Navigate Geopolitical Risk
(2) Secure your Supply Chain
(3) Explore the Biopharma Epicenter
(4) Mapping Global API Capacity
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