Oxygen Barrier Materials Market - Forecasts from 2024 to 2029

The market of oxygen barrier materials is anticipated to be surging at the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.21% between the forecast period (2024-2029).
For ages, techniques have been evolving for protecting materials, especially foods and beverages against oxidation and aerobic microbiological growth. The protection against oxygen gives long shelf life, quality, and the right price for the materials that come under the protection from oxygen and moisture. This protects it from spoilage, contamination, and degradation. This protection gives the product's shelf life, prevents product wastage, and gives economic benefits.

Oxygen barrier materials market by material types can be segmented into different materials like Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), which is a flexible and durable material for packaging related to food, medicine, and personal care products. This material is best against moisture, gases, and other contaminants. Further, Nylon is a useful material used in many industries like consumer goods, automotive, electronics, textiles, etc. Nylon-MXD6 can be used for the moisture-proof packaging of the pellets. Additionally, Aluminum is a metal that is recyclable and used for the packaging of food and beverages, it provides a barrier against oxygen, moisture, and other contaminants. It can be molded into different shapes and sizes and can be used as a can or coil.

The food packaging industry would be the one the leading end-user industry for oxygen barrier materials consumption. As per the OECD data, the consumption of pigmeat would increase to 40,911.79 tonnes ('000) weight equivalent by the year 2032, an increase of 1.11% from 2022. Further, in the European Union, the milk yield (kg/dairy cow) has expanded from 7,610.70 in 2022 to 7,749.30 in 2023. These developments needed oxygen and moisture barrier materials for better packaging.

OXYGEN BARRIER MATERIALS MARKET DRIVERS:

Expanding application in the food packaging sector

The increasing demand for oxygen barrier materials has been expanding in the market, primary reason is demand from the meat processing industries. The production of poultry meat in the European Union increased by 3.16% from 2022 to 2023, while the consumption of poultry meat increased by 4.64% for the same period. Meat products are the major products for the food packaging industry, due to the nature of meat products for becoming easily spoilage. Meat products are more susceptible to the high protein content and rich nutrients. Due to this, there have been more stringent packaging requirements for the meats.

According to the OECD data, the increase in sheepmeat consumption would reach 2378.45 tonnes ('000) weight by 2032, a rise of 4.38% for 2023. With this increase in meat production and global food processing, the need for better packaging would increase. A long shelf life and protection from physical damage are needed for the product to reach the consumer in good condition and with health benefits.

Rising applications in the pharmaceuticals

With the changing lifestyle among the population along with the growing living crisis of pollution in the urbanized cities, there has been a growing number of cases of chronic ailments in society. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), about 422 million people worldwide have diabetes and many of them live in low and middle-income countries. Further, changing lifestyles cause obesity at an alarming rate in developed countries. These challenges are the primary reason for chronic disease ailments in the population. The rise of chronic disease ailments in a large section of society is causing an increased demand for medicines and healthcare across the world.

This growth in chronic ailments caused a rise in the consumption of cardiovascular system medicines across the countries. In Italy, Spain, and Sweden, the defined daily dosage for the 1,000 inhabitants per day, has increased by the percentage unit of 0.38%, 1.47%, and 4.63% respectively. This rise in the consumption of pharmaceuticals gives a rise in the demand for the proper oxygen barrier materials for longer shelf life and safer consumption.

Growing demand for eco-friendly material for packaging

Companies across the world are showing a commitment to sustainable packaging solutions. In October 2022, Henkel and Siegwerk both collaborated on the solution for the innovative oxygen barrier coating. The new material would provide mono-material flexible packaging that is easier to recycle. This would accelerate the transition to the circular economy. Both companies are working together to get the barrier solution for flexible packaging without compromising shelf-life. Henkel and Siegwerk are both leaders in sustainable and innovative packaging solutions.

Further in March 2022, HYDRO-LAC GA Oxygen Barrier Coating was launched by Huber Group, a recyclable packaging solution for protection from oxygen and thus enables mono-material packaging. It can be returned to the material cycle. These developments indicate the growing concern in the packaging industry towards the recyclability and sustainability of the material for better environmental effects.

Asia Pacific region to dominate the oxygen barrier materials market during the forecast period.

Major growing economies of the world like China and India and major bigger economies like South Korea and Japan lie in the region for the overall development of the region. The region has shown a robust economic and industrial boost in the last few decades. According to the ibef (India Brand Equity Foundation), the country is showing robust growth and development in the food processing industry. The market size of the food processing sector is expected to reach US$ 1.27 trillion in 2027 from US$ 866 billion in 2022. The Country is becoming the largest consumer as well as producer of processed foods. Indians are more likely to have different varieties of food cuisines as well and the foreign influence on domestic food consumption also plays a role.

Further, China has shown rapid economic transformation in the last few years and has made the country evolve into a dynamic transformation of its healthcare sector, with a substantial focus on the pharmaceutical industry. This led to the Chinese pharmaceutical market being among the fastest-growing markets worldwide. This demand for the medicine would lead to the overall demand for oxygen barrier materials in the country.

Oxygen barrier materials market challenges:

• Environmental concerns for plastic materials have been a major concern for governments and society as a whole. Due to this, the European Union implemented the Plastic Waste Directive as a long-term strategy for reducing plastic consumption and waste, it targets to reduce 50% of plastic packaging by 2025 and increase to 55% by 2030. Moreover, the tax has been implemented for the use of non-recyclable material.
• Several players in the industry have been trying to reduce plastic waste and replace it with recyclable materials in the practice. The use of aluminum is also helpful for reducing waste and increasing the recyclability of the packaging.

Oxygen Barrier Materials Market Key Developments:

• In April 2024, Siegwerk and Borouge came together to develop fully recyclable mono-material solutions. This would contribute to the advanced circular economy. The material would contribute to a lower carbon footprint. The product is a differentiated polyolefin solution, to co-develop 100% recyclable mono-material solutions, with innovative inks and coatings technologies. The material is overcome by several challenges ensuring reliable sealability, certain mechanical properties or thermal stability, or realizing specific levels of barrier performance depending on the end-use application. Another, co-development project between them is the making of a barrier stand-up pouch using Borealis Borstar technology-based enhanced HDPE FB5600 from Borouge and Siegwerk’s oxygen barrier coating CIRKIT OxyBar BC1582.
• In October 2023, Solvay introduced the Diofan Ultra736, a new polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) coating solution with an ultra-high water vapor barrier. This allows the carbon footprint reduction for pharmaceutical blister films. Diofan Ultra736 meets the regulatory requirements for direct pharmaceutical contact. This can be widely used in pharmaceutical blister packaging to protect sensitive solid-dose drug preparations. Similarly can be used for the packaging of delicate food and similar other consumer goods. It can be applied to both plastic and paper-based substrates and applied for the unique combination of water vapor and oxygen barrier.
• In September 2023, ProAmpac unveiled the ProActive Recyclable® RP-1000 High Barrier (HB) paper-based technology. This is an excellent oxygen, moisture barrier, and grease-resistant material. Most suitable for dry food products such as dehydrated fruit, confectionery, and flavored oatmeal. RP-1000HB is a curbside recyclable paper solution, which has the advantages such as integration with existing equipment, simplifying the transition process, and minimizing costs compared to less efficient sustainable alternatives. This is passed with an 85% relative humidity conditions test to preserve its barrier properties and ensure the longevity of products. ProAmpac is a leading global flexible packaging company with diverse offerings for different packaging solutions.
• In July 2023, Melodea, Ltd. introduced the latest innovation MelOx NGen, for barrier products specifically engineered for the recyclability of plastic food packaging. The material offers an eco profile along with maintaining food freshness and substantially. This is a water-based, plant-sourced coating for several plastic food packaging such as films, pouches, bags, lids, and blister packs. This has been approved by the FDA and BfR for its compatibility. It can be used in extending the shelf-life of foods such as snacks, confectionary, nutrition bars, meats, and dairy products as well as pharmaceuticals. Melodea is the company for high-performance barrier coating for an eco-friendly alternative to plastic packaging including EVOH.

The oxygen barrier materials market is segmented and analyzed as follows:

By End User

• Food and Beverage
• Healthcare
• Personal Care and Cosmetics
• Other Industries

By Material Types

• Polyvinylidene Chloride (PVDC)
• Ethylene Vinyl Alcohol (EVOH)
• Polyamide
• Aluminum
• Other Materials (PVOH, Nylon, PET, Polyethylene Naphthalate etc.)

By Geography

• North America
• USA
• Canada
• Mexico
• South America
• Brazil
• Argentina
• Rest of South America
• Europe
• United Kingdom
• Germany
• France
• Italy
• Spain
• Rest of Europe
• Middle East and Africa
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE
• Rest of the Middle East and Africa
• Asia Pacific
• China
• India
• Japan
• South Korea
• Taiwan
• Thailand
• Indonesia
• Rest of Asia-Pacific