As the world becomes a more international and environmentally aware marketplace, very many sectors of the packaging industry are reaping benefits. That is expected to continue.
The global food packaging technology market is projected to reach a value of US$46.69b (AU$53.2b) by 2019. It will grow at a CAGR of 6.1% from 2014 to 2019. It is an intensely competitive market due to the presence of large number of large and small scale firms.
Both markets are receiving the benefits of increases in health awareness, food manufacturers’ demand for extended shelf-life of food, rigorous stringent food safety regulations, and demand for sustainable food packaging. These are the catalysts for both recent and continued growth. A global rise in consumer confidence for packaged food is helping to maintain growth too.
The majority of food packaging covers dairy products, bakery & confectionery products, poultry, meat & seafood, convenience foods and fruits & vegetables. The convenience foods sector is now one of the major contributors to the technology and equipment markets. In terms of the types of food packaging technology, controlled packaging holds the major market share, while form, fill, and seal holds the major market in the types of food packaging equipment. Increasing the shelf-life of food products is a major focus for technological development. Convenience food is the dominant application segment in the food packaging equipment and technology market.
The food & beverage metal cans market is projected to reach US$ 49.20 billion ($AU56.1) by 2019, growing at a CAGR of 2.9%. North America holds the largest market share for the food & beverage metal cans market in terms of volume (billion units). It accounted for more than one third of the total metal cans market in 2013.
The growth in nanotechnology is being fuelled by the race for packaging to make lives simpler and safer. Nano-enabled food and beverage packaging (active and intelligent packaging) is surging because it gives longer shelf life to food and beverages compared to traditional plastic packaging. Active packaging has a comparatively larger market than intelligent packaging, but intelligent packaging is growing faster, the research has found. The global nano-enabled packaging market for food and beverages will reach $15.0 billion in 2020, according to Persistence Market Research. This younger market was worth US$ 6.5b ($AU 7.4b) in 2013 and is growing at a CAGR of 12.7%
Customers are demonstrating a preference for traceable food and beverages packaging, because it offers information such as expiry date and best use period, present state of the consumables. Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags are attracting interest because they keep customers informed about the state of the food within the packaging. Stricter regulations associated with active packaging have been stimulating the use of intelligent packaging in Europe and North America.
The growth of intelligent packaging is being boosted by the increasing demand for fresh fruits and vegetables, especially in international trade. The US. for example, is one of the largest producers and exporters of cherries globally. With the ease in trade regulations, fruit exports of the U.S. have increased. In September 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that after ten years of negotiations, U.S. cherries can be exported to Western Australia, one of the most important markets for cherries. Intelligent packaging is allowing cherry growers to adhere to stricter product identification requirements that have been, or are due to be, imposed.
The increasing demand for meat products, beverages, vegetables, and prepared foods is expected to drive their respective nano-enabled packaging markets, while the market share of bakery products is expected to decline on account of the rapid growth of other application segments.
