US demand for flexible bulk packaging is expected to increase 3.4% per annum to $7.2 billion in 2011, say The Freedonia Group, a Cleveland-based industry market research firm.
Advances will be supported by a healthy outlook for consumer spending and a growth in food and beverage production, the leading flexible bulk packaging market.
Among the various products, film wrap, plastic strapping and plastic shipping sacks are expected to see the fastest growth based on cost and performance advantages.
These and other trends are presented in Flexible Bulk Packaging, a new study from The Freedonia Group.
Film wrap
Accounting for 32% of total flexible bulk packaging demand in 2006, film wrap will continue to log robust gains, climbing 6.2% annually through 2011.
Advances will be driven by continued requirements for the bundling and protection of goods during transportation and storage.
Demand will be supported by retail trends, such as the popularity of club stores and other mass market retailers that utilise shrink wrap for multipack items and pallet wrap for product warehousing.
Plastic shipping sacks
Although shipping sacks will see overall slow growth, plastic shipping sack demand will increase at an above-average pace as plastic sacks continue to take market share away from paper and textile alternatives primarily due to their lower cost.
As a result, by 2011, plastic will gain over half of the shipping sack market.
Plastic strapping
Despite overall modest strapping gains through 2011, plastic strapping will register above-average growth as further inroads are made into markets, such as building materials, once dominated by steel strapping.
Popular plastic
Plastic will remain the dominant flexible bulk packaging material, with consumption far outpacing other materials through 2011.
The leading plastic resin will continue to be polyethylene due to its attractive cost/performance profile and its heavy usage in the large film wrap segment.
Although downgauging of materials will limit plastic consumption to some extent, this effect will be softened by the increasing applications for a number of products and the ongoing supplantation of paper sacks by their plastic counterparts.
www.freedoniagroup.com
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