US Demand for Packaging Inks, Coatings, and Additives to Reach $3 Billion

US demand for packaging inks, coatings and additives is forecast to expand 2.5 percent annually to $3.0 billion in 2013, with volume rising to 1.4 billion pounds.  Value gains are expected to decelerate from the pace of the 2003-2008 period due to an expected moderation in pricing.  However, market volume is projected to grow somewhat faster due to improving real growth in packaging production.  These and other trends, including market share and product segmentation, are presented in Packaging Inks, Coatings & Additives, a new study from The Freedonia Group, Inc., a Cleveland-based industry research firm.

Among the various packaging substrates that use inks, coatings and additives, plastic represents the largest and fastest growing category due to the continued expansion of plastic packaging materials at the expense of other substrates, such as paper and paperboard, metal, and glass.  Coatings and additives will benefit from increasing barrier requirements as plastic packaging is developed for a widening array of applications.  The growing use of flexible plastic packaging will support demand for inks, as this type of packaging can be printed on directly, without the use of an intervening substrate.

Among the three product categories, packaging inks account for the single largest share of market value.  Flexographic inks will remain the leading type of ink used on packaging, supported by the growing popularity of flexible packaging, which utilizes flexographic printing as its process of choice.  Smaller and increasingly sophisticated job runs will also favor flexographic inks, based on improvements in both quality and consistency that have enabled them to compete with other inks, including gravure and lithographic types.

Packaging coatings market value will benefit from growing demand for more environmentally friendly products, such as powder and radiation-curable coatings, which provide greater efficiency.  Although increased efficiency will limit volume gains, these formulations are priced higher than conventional products, thus supporting overall market value.  Packaging additives are projected to achieve the most rapid gains through 2013, with plastic packaging accounting for the vast majority of demand.  Additives can be used to improve the clarity, strength, shatter resistance and barrier properties of plastic. 

The Freedonia Group is a leading international business research company, founded in 1985, that publishes more than 100 industry research studies annually. This industry analysis provides an unbiased outlook and a reliable assessment of an industry and includes product segmentation and demand forecasts, industry trends, demand history, threats and opportunities, competitive strategies, market share determinations and company profiles.