Explosive growth will continue to mark the food preservation industry in the US, hitting 5.5 per cent annually until 2008. The use of encapsulated ingredients in baked goods represents 30 per cent of the total market share.
Preservation and shelf life longevity continue to be a key concern for the €443 billion US food industry, driving strong growth over the past decade. According to a new report from Business Communications, the market will increase to more than 40 per cent by 2008.
Today, the US market for food preservation and shelf life extenders is estimated at $197 billion (€178.6bn) in 2003, 74 per cent of the food processing industry.
While chemically synthetic preservatives are losing popularity, 'natural' chemical preservatives are growing in stature. In 2003, the chemical preservation industry was led by sorbates, with annual sales of $162 million, or approximately 53 per cent of all sales of chemical and natural preservatives. With a value of $143 million, sorbates dominated the preservatives, taking 58 per cent of the market share.
Total sales for preservatives in 2003 was estimated at $306.3 million, with a 2.2 per cent annual growth rate, while total production was estimated at $330 million, with a modest 2.1 per cent yearly growth until 2008.
Ninety-eight per cent of all foods are packaged, leading this segment of the preservation and shelf life extension industry to be the strongest and most innovative, writes the report. Dependence on synthetic preservatives will decrease as a result.
Solid growth in the $110 billion US food packaging industry is seen in plastics, which are tipped to see 5 per cent annual growth over the next five years. This includes MAP, hard plastics, polymer films and other forms of plastic wrap. Metal packaging, such as foils, are seeing a growth spurt. Although they represent only about 3.6 per cent of the total units, or $17.9 billion, a 6.6 per cent year on growth is projected until 2008.
The overall market for controlled-release technology continues to focus on the pharmaceutical end of the spectrum, but food uses are making modest gains nonetheless, with 4 per cent annual growth predicted for the next five years.
The encapsulated ingredients industry for food on the whole represented about $4.5 billion, or 33 per cent, of the total $13.6 billion market for controlled-release technology.