Biobased Biodegradable Plastics Market

Biobased biodegradable plastics are derived from natural resources and can be safely disposed or recycled. Global consumption of plastics was valued at 31.1 million tonnes in 2014 and in the same year, biodegradable plastics constituted a miniscule share of approximately 0.21%. 

Globally, consumption of biobased biodegradable plastics is projected to reach from 665.7 thousand tonnes in 2014 to 1,356.9 thousand tons in 2020 at a projected CAGR of 12.6% during the forecast period.

Biobased Biodegradable Plastics Market: Drivers & Trends

Key driving factors identified in the biobased biodegradable plastics market are regulatory framework for safe waste disposal and management, implementation of environmental conservation initiatives by government and various institutions, and efforts by manufacturers to reduce dependency on crude oil derived products.

Some of the restraining factors identified in the market are low awareness of the consumers and relatively low durability of these plastics as compared to conventional plastics.

The key trends identified in the global biobased biodegradable plastics market include increasing utilization of these plastics in packaging applications, bottles and food service disposables manufacturing.

Market Segmentation

On the basis of product type, the biobased biodegradable plastics market is segmented into polyester, starch blends, poly lactic acid (PLA), cellulose, polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) and other biobased biodegradable plastics.

Application segments of biobased biodegradable plastics market include packaging, fibres, healthcare, agriculture and others. Regional analysis of biobased biodegradable plastics market includes Western Europe, Asia Pacific, Eastern Europe, North America, Middle East & Africa and Japan.

Biobased Biodegradable Plastics Market Analysis by Product Type

Polyester, starch blends and PLA collectively accounted for approximately 88% of the total biobased biodegradable plastics consumption in 2014 globally and are anticipated to remain the largest product segments by 2020. All other product types are collectively projected to grow at CAGR of 13.8% during the forecast period in terms of volume.

Biobased Biodegradable Plastics Market Analysis by Application

Packaging application constitutes the largest application segment of biobased biodegradable plastics market. In terms of volume, it is projected to grow 2X by 2020 from 2014. In 2014, the volume share of packaging application was valued at nearly 65% of the total market and is expected to remain the largest application segment over the forecast period. All other application segments on the basis of volume are collectively projected to exhibit a CAGR of 12.5%.

Biobased Biodegradable Plastics Market Analysis by Geography

Western Europe is the largest market for biobased biodegradable plastics globally and accounted for about 44% of the global biobased biodegradable plastics consumption across the globe in 2014. In terms of consumption, the region is followed by North America, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Eastern Europe, Japan and Middle East & Africa.

In terms of consumption volumes, developed economies are collectively projected to grow at CAGR of 11.2% while developing economies are altogether projected to grow at CAGR of 15.4% during the forecast period.

In terms of revenue, the global market is projected to increase by 2.8X from 2014 to 2020. Developed economies are projected to account for 62% share in the total incremental revenue opportunity over the forecast period representing a revenue CAGR of 16.5% during the forecast period.

Global average pricing of biobased biodegradable plastics is expected to witness an increasing trend over the forecast period owing to certain factors such as varying capacity utilization rates across geographies, increasing energy costs resulting in increased production cost and supply-demand gap across geographies.

Global Biobased Biodegradable Plastics Consumption, By Region (‘000 Tonnes)

Source: FMI, 2014