Reverse logistics in pharma industry

Here's is something to talk about. Pharmaceutical returns management: a $2.5 billion dollars returns industry and there is an estimated reverse flow of $5 billion dollar worth of expired, recalled, damaged packaging, or wrongly delivered products. The planning of pharmaceutical returns management requires a multi-objective optimization approach: the pharmaceutical companies need to deal with liabilities arising from returns management (e.g. recalls), have to consider a cost minimizing reverse logistics network and have to act fast to avoid disruptions in the sales level. An additional complicating decision is choosing to what to do with returned products.

The increasing importance of reverse supply chain visibility is felt at the heart of pharma companies; the tracking of counterfeit and lost/stolen products in reverse stream is as important as it is in the forward supply chain. I have searched a bit and found out third party returns management firms currently dominate in the pharmaceutical returns industry. There are huge risks associated with returns management in pharmaceuticals and also, in general, these companies has very responsive and visible (early adopters of RFID) supply chains. It is possible for these companies to integrate into reverse logistics activities as an extension of their forward supply chain competences. It seems very interesting; I will be searching on this topic for a while too, meanwhile please tell me what you think.