Barrier Resins Market Size, Share, Demand and Forecast Analysis

Barrier Resins

The plastics such as polyvinylidene Chloride, ethylene vinyl alcohol, polyethylene naphthalate, polyamide, etc which prevents the penetration of gas (oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide), vapours or liquids are called as barrier resins. Barrier resins are used for packaging in food & beverages, pharmaceutical & medical, cosmetics, agriculture, industrial and others.

The market of barrier resins is segmented based on types which include, PVDC, EVOH, PEN, polyamide (PA), polyethylene terephthalate (PEN), polyolefins, polyvinyl alcohols (PVA) and others.

The food & beverages sector accounted for the largest market share of barrier resins in 2023. The demand of barrier resins in food & beverages industry is driven by its functions such as protection from gases at humidity and refrigerated conditions, protection from moisture, UV, grease, oil and other chemicals and preservation of food such as meat, dairy products, fruits etc.

Market Overview:

Asia-Pacific dominated the market of barrier resins in 2023. The demand of barrier resins in APAC region is driven by its application in food & beverages industry on the back of growing disposable income, growing demand of packaged food, growing urbanisation, changing lifestyle and increasing population. For example, the meat production rose by around 5% to reach around 339 MT in 2023 and Asia accounts for around 40-45% of the global meat production. As per Ministry of Fisheries, animal husbandry & dairying, India accounted for 24% of the global milk production in 2023-2022 and the country was the largest milk producing country globally. India also witnessed an increase of 51% in the milk production in the last 8 years.   

In addition to this, barrier resins provide light weight packaging and reduces the use of cans and glass. The growing food & beverages industry is also driving the demand of barrier resins in the region. 

Demand Analysis:

The market of barrier resins is restrained by regulations placed on plastics due to harmful effects on the environment. For example, PVDC is used as a barrier resin for meat packaging since decades as it can protect meat in heavy and dry moisture environment and permits shelf life up to 100 days. However, PVDC packaging cannot be recycled and it releases dioxins on incineration which is carcinogenic to human health. In accordance with this, in 2019, Tesco a leading retailer in UK announced strict ban on the use of PVDC materials.

There are other alternatives of PVDC such as EVOH which is readily available for fresh meat packaging. The wider use of EVOH is still limited as it is sensitive to high moisture conditions. Additionally, EVOH has high cost per kilo than PVDC and packaging suppliers require high cost and investment for EVOH structures to replace low cost PVDC based extrusion technology. 

Recent Developments

• Braskem developed a stand-up pouch made up of post consumption recycled (PCR) raw material in May 2022 in collaboration with Antilhas, Gualapack and Terphane. The stand-up pouch packaging is produced from 43.3% of recycled polyethylene and recycled PET. Braskem provided recycled PE resin and PET film, whereas Terphane is the supplier of Ecophane PCR technology.
• In April 2022, ExxonMobil launched Exceed S, a new line of polyethylene resins with improved performance and reduced complexity of film extrusion. The new PE resin is developed for applications such as heavy-duty sacks for industry and agriculture, silo bags for farming, and for bags and pouches for liquids and food.