Brazil Plastic Packaging Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2021 - 2026)

The Brazil Plastic Packaging market was expected to register a CAGR of 2.32% during the forecast period (2021-2026). The COVID-19 pandemic provided significant relief to the plastic packaging vendors. Although many countries were slowly banning such packaging and promoting reusable packaging, the outbreak changed the consumers’ and governments’ behavior toward them. Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the demand for nutritional drinks and healthy food increased exponentially. The majority of these products are packaged with single-use plastic. The orders were so huge on a global level that the manufacturers and packaging companies in the field even expanded their facilities, which was also supported by most of the governments.

Key Highlights

• The commercial success of single-use plastics as a packaging product is due to a combination of flexibility, strength, lightness, stability, impermeability, and ease of sterilization, which is still driving their usage despite all the environmental concerns surrounding such packaging. Although plastic can be substituted by materials such as aluminum, glass, and metals that are more likely to be recycled, they typically weigh a lot more than plastic and consequently end up using more energy. On the other hand, paper-based materials are lighter but are not necessarily suited for the intricacies of packaging food and beverages.
• The lightweight property of the plastic is driving the growth of the plastic packaging in Brazil. Glass is much heavier compared to plastic, which means more trips would be required while transporting. This translates to a more significant environmental impact. Glass is also much heavier for the end consumer, whereas plastic is lightweight and much easier to carry.
• Plastic bottles also provide a good shelf life to store the mineral water for an extended period. However, as the world is shifting towards a circular economy, bottled water manufacturers use recycled PET containers to store water. The containers must be kept in a dark place with no light exposure to avoid chemical reactions and bacterial growth. Also, with r-PET, the shelf life of the water bottle has been reduced to 20 days.
• Consumers are now using other packaging materials, which offer environment-friendly properties. The consumption of aluminum and glass is witnessing high adoption rates in the region, owing to the eco-friendly nature and high recyclability. Thus, consumers are increasingly moving toward other materials from plastic.

Key Market Trends

Bottle are Observing a Significant Increase

• Bottled water not only has become the largest application for plastic closures, but it also promises and the greatest growth opportunities through 2021 with the increasing concerns over the safety and hygiene of drinking water.
• The current “on-the-go” lifestyle demands lightweight products that are easy to use. This trend has led to smaller and more convenient packaging. Vendors’ solutions for tailored caps and closures offer optimized, lighter designs and processing. Additionally, because of lightweight, bottled water producers have reduced plastic use by an average of 27 % in recent years.
• The IBWA is promoting the use of 100% recyclable plastic containers, including caps. Less virgin plastic is needed in the marketplace by collecting these bottles and reusing the plastic to make new containers from old ones. This instigates the market to adopt a circular economy: minimizing waste and making the most of existing resources. At a recycling rate of 33%, the single-serve PET plastic bottled water containers doubled in the last 10 years.
• According to International Bottled Water Association, unlike tap water, which is regulated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), bottled water is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a packaged food product to provide a consistently safe and reliable source of drinking water.
• Most plastic bottles used for soft drinks and water are made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which is highly recyclable. But as their use soars across the globe, efforts to collect and recycle the bottles to keep them from polluting the oceans, are failing to keep up.

Food is One of the Significant Factor for Market Growth

• The E-commerce industry led to the trend of online food delivery in the region, which is experiencing an upsurge due to the rising number of online food delivery platforms, enabling the industry players to gain a more significant footprint by registering on such platforms. This has led to an increased usage of caps and closure for the effective packaging of food.
• Several environmental concerns were raised to reduce the usage of plastic in food packaging. This led to the usage of alternative food packaging options instead of plastic, such as cardboard, paperboard cartons, and poaches. These are already being used for cakes, dry fruits, and other dry foods, etc. The use of alternative packaging may restrain the growth of the studied market in the future.
• The market for small-sized plastic containers is anticipated to witness growth, with the sales of dairy products, jams, etc. In recent years the sales of yogurt witnessed a slump. Hence, in order to regain the demand, many manufacturers are launching new products.
• Additionally, yogurt manufacturers have been forced to reclaim the health benefits of the products to be able to retain their market shares. Consumers have started to show interest in plant-based alternative products and, in general, they look for transparency, in terms of ingredients.

Competitive Landscape

As the demand for plastic packaging has been increasing significantly in the Brazil region, the market is mildly concentrated with the presence of major players like Amcor, Coveris Holding, Berry Global, Sealed Air Corporation, Constantia Flexibles, among others.

• Jan 2021 - Wipak has partnered with Arla Foods, Paulig, and VTT to test Thermocell, a cellulose and fatty acid-based plastic film, to create food packaging. The bio-based substance is constructed of renewable materials and can be used instead of oil or fossil-based plastic. The company has been assisting with the material's market launch by sharing its creative development knowledge in durable materials and testing and certifying Thermocell's compatibility for food applications.
• March 2021 - A partner for the maintenance, repair, and handling of passive bulk temperature-controlled containers at several key locations was announced by Sonoco ThermoSafe, a Sonoco unit provider of temperature-assured packaging solutions, and Unilode Aviation Solutions, a company dealing with outsourced unit load management and repair services.

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