The European biotechnology sector is evolving rapidly, bringing both opportunities and challenges for healthcare logistics and transportation. With increasing demand for biotech which comes with specialized handling, temperature-controlled storage, and specialized last-mile distribution, pharma logistics providers must adapt to ensure compliance, efficiency, and smooth operations. At Movianto, we leverage our expertise, pan-European infrastructure, and technologies to support biotech manufacturers across Europe and globally. We investigated the national and international trends and challenges of the European biotech market and are proud to present solutions for both levels.
Germany: Scaling Biotech While Meeting Stringent Regulations
Germany remains a key player in European biotech. According to Bio Deutschland and Ernst&Young, German biotech firms raised €1.92 billion in financing in 2024. The sector continues to experience strong growth, particularly in cancer treatment, which secured €898 million in venture capital in 2024—a 68% increase from the previous year—and in mRNA technology. However, economic pressures and regulatory shifts require careful adaptation to sustain growth and maintain competitiveness in the global market.
The main logistical challenges involve high-volume pharmaceutical storage, adherence to Good Distribution Practice (GDP) standards, and last-mile delivery for temperature-sensitive products.
Movianto’s Solution: Our Movianto Germany team provides innovative logistics and distribution services across the entire healthcare supply chain, including extensive repackaging and relabeling services, order-to-cash services, a multilingual customer service center, dangerous goods management, postponement, export declaration, and clinical trials management. Flawless temperature control on-site (e.g., controlled ambient, cold chain, or frozen) ensures product and patient safety. Additionally, Movianto is an experienced biotechnology logistics provider capable of helping start-up and small-to-medium-sized biotech companies to enter the European market.
“Germany’s biotech supply chain is evolving fast. Our infrastructure and our healthcare logistics expertise ensure we meet the increasing demand while maintaining compliance.” – Georg Maurer, Commercial Director Movianto DACH.
United Kingdom: A Fast-Growing Biotech Hub
The UK biotech sector continues to expand rapidly, bolstered by strong investments, with £3.7 billion raised in 2024—a 106% increase from the previous year. The UK retained its position as Europe’s leading biotech hub, attracting 40% of total VC investment across the continent. Key growth areas include gene therapy, AI-driven drug discovery, and advanced biomanufacturing, with regional innovation clusters like the “Golden Triangle” of Oxford, Cambridge and London driving growth. However, logistical challenges persist, including complex regulatory frameworks, customs clearance requirements, cold chain distribution for temperature-sensitive biotech products, and the demand for rapid delivery solutions— the services we offer as part of our offerings.
Movianto’s Solution: With a well-established network in the UK, Movianto ensures smooth cross-border operations, temperature-controlled storage, advanced tracking systems, and expert regulatory compliance support. “UK biotech logistics require agility. Our localised expertise allows us to navigate complex regulations. We are actively investing in innovative cold chain and pharma manufacturing solutions to deliver hassle-free supply chain solutions to the healthcare sector.” – Mundy Charlie, Commercial Director Movianto UK.
Benelux: A Strategic Biotech Gateway
Due to its central location and linked to its Foreign Direct Investment climate, the Benelux region acts as a central logistics hub for the European biotechnology sector, specifically supporting new market entries. Seventy-five percent of all Global R&D is conducted in Biotech Hotbeds in either the United States or Asia. Due to its demographics and reimbursement schedules, the European market remains very attractive to international biotech companies. “Fiscal- and Regulatory structure often require having a central fulfilment operation in the Benelux, supported by in-country hubs in the UK, Spain and Switzerland. Within the Movianto Group, we are uniquely positioned to support these innovative international biotech companies,” says Eric Willems, Commercial Director Benelux.
Movianto’s Solution: We provide a one-stop-shop platform, including inbound transportation to the hubs in Benelux, customs clearance, inbound handling, storage, outbound fulfillment, pan-European or global final-mile distribution, and multilingual, pan-European order-to-cash (SOX compliant) services. The fulfillment centers offer a wide range of temperatures (15-25°C, 2-8°C, -20°C, -40°C, and -80°C), as well as separate vaults for dangerous goods and controlled drugs. Our Transport Control Tower solution enables Movianto Benelux to leverage active temperature control solutions (via Eurotranspharma), as well as passive solutions (utilizing global integrator networks), providing an end-to-end, off-the-shelf solution for international biotech companies. Key data is fully transparent and available to our clients. To fully meet the growing market needs, we are actively expanding cold storage and freezing capacities.
France: A Growing Biotech Market with Storage Demands
The French biotech sector has grown significantly and now counts over 958 biotech firms. This expansion has led to greater demand for cold chain storage, increased regulatory scrutiny, and scalable logistics solutions. The French biotech sector secured 950M€ in funding in 2024, with a surge in personalized medicine, cell therapies, and AI-driven drug discovery. Despite economic fluctuations, investor confidence in biotech innovation remains strong.
Movianto’s Solution: Our newly opened Moussy C site provides 34,000 m² of specialized storage, including 5,700 temperature-controlled pallet spaces at +2°C/+8°C. We also implement autonomous operational teams to improve service quality and efficiency. “France’s biotech sector is scaling rapidly. Our storage capacity, state of the art warehousing processes, and integrated transport solutions ensure high quality and compliance at every stage for this highly demanding Biotech segment.” – Nicolas Virmoux, Customer Experience Director at Movianto France.
A Cohesive Approach to Biotech Supply Chain
Despite regional differences, biotech logistics challenges across Europe share common traits: temperature-sensitive products, regulatory compliance, in some cases tailor made medicine involving just-in-time production and the need for flexible, tech-driven solutions. Movianto’s pan-European presence, cutting-edge infrastructure, and expert teams ensure that biotech companies receive the highest quality logistics support, tailored to their unique market demands.
For more information on our capabilities, visit our Biotech dedicated page.
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