The study, by The Freedonia Group, said rapid advances in technology and “more reasonable” prices of products will also fuel demand growth of 8.3 per cent annually – well above the rate in the packaging industry as a whole. Active and intelligent packaging has been defined as prolonging the life of foodstuffs or reacting when they have gone off by, for example, changing colour.
The need to minimise losses in food perishables will go hand in hand with safety fears to spur requirements for more sophisticated packing technology to extend shelf life or improve the traceability of food and beverages, said the research.
Food and beverage markets
The two largest markets last year for active and intelligent packing were the food and drinks sectors, accounting for slightly more than half of total demand. This dominant share has been driven as a result of heightened consumer awareness of safety issues in the wake of a slew of high-profile food contamination scares over the past few years. Increasing globalisation of food trade has further lifted demand as the need to be able to verify product integrity following extended transportation and storage periods increases. Growth in demand for active and intelligent packing in the food and drink segements is forecast to reach double digits for the review period.
Active packing
Active packing growth id projected to climb 7.1 per cent per year to reach $1.7bn by the end of 2013. This will be propelled by fast gains in gas scavengers - as a result of further demand for oxygen scavengers bottles in food and beverages. The US market for gas scavengers is forecast to see annual growth in excess of 10 per cent, rising from $450m last year to $735m by 2013.
“Solid growth for oxygen scavenger bottles will be based on heightened demand for less costly monolayer oxygen scavenger systems, which will drive usage with single-serving bottles for beverages such as hot-fill juices and teas,” said the Cleveland-based industry research firm.
Oxygen-sensitive beverages such as wine could also experience a shift from glass to PET as manufacturers continued their green packing push, said the group.
Demand increases in moisture and corrosion control products will be less marked “based on the presence of more mature product types and applications”, said the report. The moisture segment will see a healthy 4.7 per cent growth a year, while increases in the corrosion sector will be limited to 1.6 per cent a year – worth $365m and $390m respectively by 2013.
Intelligent packing
Starting from a relatively modest level of $80m in 2008, the total US market value of active packaging products will rise to $220m within four years – an annual growth rate of over 22 per cent.
This will be driven in part by robust gains for time temperature indicators (TTI) – devices that can track when a food has been in a potentially hazardous temperature situation and are used to indicate the freshness and safety of a product.
Other devices smart devices offering “product differentiation, traceability or various interactive features at more cost effective prices" will also support growth, said the report.