High Barrier Packaging Films Market

Growing prevalence of high barrier packaging solutions in large retail chains and Significant demand in the food packaging industry boost market growth.

The demand for high-barrier packaging film is advancing due to the increasing domination of large retail chains in emerging and developed national markets. It allows the expansion of the market for packed food, emphasizing cost regulation and shelf life extension. The domestic supermarkets and hypermarkets are expanding their operational facilities across various cities in emerging countries and hold a major share in selling food and beverages among varied aged groups. Global retail chains are also investing in new outlets in developing markets, which further aims to increase barrier packaging mandate.

Consumers are favoring supermarkets and hypermarkets due to the high availability and diversification of product ranges. Moreover, the number of discount stores and private label products has evolved in recent years, empowering the economic or lower incomes to purchase packaged food and beverages at more reasonable charges.

High consumption of non-vegetarian eatables such as fish, poultry, and meat has predominantly surged the demand for barrier packaging films. As per the data documented by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in 2021, BRICS countries are the leading consumer of poultry meat consuming around 47,180.5 thousand tons of poultry meat, whereas China is the second-largest consumer of poultry meat, documenting 23,590.7 thousand tons of poultry meat consumption.

The highly flexible ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) barrier film is one of the high barrier packaging films recommended for meat-based food products as it has an oxygen transfer rate (OTR) of 0.6cc/m2. On the other hand, different types of high barrier packaging are used for wrapping fresh foods, microwaved cooked foods, etc. The OTR among these food variants varies considerably. The less amount of oxygen is better for the packaged foods. The high barrier packaging films such as linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) offer high clarity, and OTR as high as 2500cc/m2 is considered ideal for fresh produce food packaging.

The manufacturers' products are licensed under various certifications, including ISO 9001 and SQF Level Three certifications, ensuring superior quality packaging is expected to drive the High Barrier Packaging Films Market.

Toppan widened its range of GL BARRIER barriers in October 2022 with a mono-material PE barrier aimed at packaging liquid products in durable, aseptic, and recyclable materials.

Huhtamaki launched next-generation tube laminates containing ISCC-certified renewable material in cooperation with LyondellBasell, Plastuni Lisses, and Groupe Rocher for cosmetics brands and food companies during July 2021. This development highlights the industry’s drive towards more sustainable materials and practices.As per a 2021 news article, Innovia launches high-speed barrier packaging film. This chlorine-free, high-speed film is known as SLF and it boosts the barrier to oxygen, moisture aroma and mineral oils in the Propafilm monos structure films from Innovia Films.

This marks an interesting development in the high barrier packaging films market.Flex Films is launching its new avant-garde patented BOPET high barrier film F-UHB-M to replace aluminum foil in flexible packages (Global Flexible Packaging Giant Uflex). As stated by the report released on 23 September 2021, Flex Films Kentucky plant will produce this new film for worldwide distribution.

The Global High Barrier Packaging Films Market Industry is witnessing a surge in demand for food preservation solutions. High barrier films effectively extend the shelf life of perishable goods by preventing moisture, oxygen, and light from degrading the product. This is particularly relevant in regions with varying climate conditions, where food spoilage is a significant concern. As consumers increasingly seek convenience and longer-lasting products, the market is projected to reach 26.0 USD Billion in 2024. This trend indicates a robust growth trajectory, as manufacturers invest in advanced packaging technologies to meet consumer expectations.

By Region, the study segments the market into North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Rest of the World. Asia Pacific held the biggest market share for Global High Barrier Packaging Films, The Asia-Pacific high barrier packaging film market region includes India, China, Japan and Others. These countries have set several regulations to monitor the quality and safety of packaging. India has the largest number of US FDA-approved pharmaceutical plants. These pharmaceutical products are packed in blister packs, bags and pouches made up of high barrier films, enhancing the growth of this market.

These factors are driving the high barrier packaging film market in various end use applications. The fastest-growing packaging segment in Asia-Pacific is high barrier film packaging, especially plastic and sub segments. In China, regional players are the major driving force for increasing high barrier packaging films production. The packaging industry is an important sector driving technology and innovation growth in the region and adding value to the various manufacturing sectors, including food and cosmetic segments.

The high barrier packaging film sector in North America witnessed noticeable growth in the financial year due to the rise in product manufacturing. Successful track records of developing new products by companies such as Sealed Air, Berry Global Inc., and Sonoco Product Company are driving the growth of the high barrier packaging film market in North America. The rise in consumer spending in North America is leading to increased food & beverage consumption and is expected to raise the demand for good-quality packaged food, which helps in driving the North America high barrier packaging film market.

In Europe, the increase in production of food & beverages and cosmetics has raised the need to manufacture high barrier films for the protection of material from further spoilage. Moreover, according to Food Federation, the food industry is the largest manufacturing sector in the UK. The growing sectors in the countries of Europe raise the need for packaging of these products, which further leads to an increased demand for high barrier film packaging solutions in Europe.

Further, the major countries studied are the U.S, Canada, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Spain, China, Japan, India, Australia, South Korea, and Brazil.

Figure 3: HIGH BARRIER PACKAGING FILMS MARKET SHARE BY REGION 2021 & 2030 (%)Source: Secondary Research, Primary Research, Market Research Future Database, and Analyst Review

Further, the Germany High Barrier Packaging Films market held a significant market share, and the UK High Barrier Packaging Films market was the fastest-growing market in the European region.

Major market players are spending a lot of money on R&D to increase their product lines, which will help the High Barrier Packaging Films Market grow even more. Market participants are also expanding their global footprint through a variety of strategic activities such as new product releases, contractual agreements, mergers and acquisitions, higher investments, and collaboration with other companies. Global High Barrier Packaging Films’ competitors must offer cost-effective things in order to flourish and thrive in an increasingly competitive and rising market climate.

One of the primary business strategies adopted by manufacturers in the Global High Barrier Packaging Films industry to benefit clients and expand the High Barrier Packaging Films Market sector is to manufacture locally to reduce operating costs.

Klockner Pentaplast plans to increase its post-consumer recycled content (PCR) capacity in North America and expand its sustainable innovation portfolio for pharmaceuticals, consumer health, and food packaging industries through substantial investment made in January 2022.

Amcor plc developed the first-ever recyclable flexible packaging globally in September 2020, thereby enabling the recycling of numerous consumer goods like ready meals, baby foods, pre-cooked soups, etc. Before, considerable research and capital investment had been made into this new product. The new product attributes are long-lastingness and environmental friendliness. The company believes that the market will appreciate the development of this new product line.

Cosmo Films Limited increased their annual rated manufacturing capacity by 25k MT at the Aurangabad (India) site during June 2022, which is an indication of the focus on the growth of demand for high-barrier packaging films.