The group of biodegradable polymers that are manufactured from renewable sources are referred to as bioplastics. The popularity that the conventional plastics had at one point in time is now lost due the hazards it can cause to current life and ecosystem. The reliance on the oil and gas industry for raw materials is another tipping reason for its unpopularity. Conventional plastics are used in nearly all industries as material for casings, electronics, packaging, and many other products. This high volume of products made out of materials that will not be degraded for centuries is creating a high level of concern, especially in developing economies, and emerging ones are swiftly following suit.
Several countries are known to have banned the use of conventional plastic bags as research indicates that plastics are the third most commonly used by-products of the oil and gas industry. The large-scale death of marine and aerial species due to ingestion or by getting stuck in the massive deposits in the ocean is a cause of concern across the globe. The rage of people, private agencies, individuals and nations against conventional plastics has led to the adoption of biodegradable plastics or bioplastics. Bioplastics uses natural ingredients such as agricultural waste, potatoes, corn starch and cellulose. These plastics are completely biodegradable, have a far shorter lifespan than conventional plastics, and are already in large scale use in healthcare and pharmaceuticals, packaging, textiles, and agriculture.
Plastics are commonly used packaging materials due to their durability, plasticity, lack of permeability to water. Unfortunately, most plastics are manufactured from petrochemicals and are thus synthetic and nonbiodegradable. This has caused one of the most pressing environmental issues of today: Plastic waste. Plastic doesn’t degenerate into the soil when discarded, and can cause soil pollution as well as posing a major threat to the health of any animals that may happen to consume it. Due to the insolubility of plastics in water, plastic waste also poses a threat to marine life. Bioplastics have been developed to eliminate the problems caused by conventional plastics. Bioplastics are made from biodegradable feedstock, which means they can degrade into the soil like any other organic matter. The global market for bioplastic packaging has been driven by the rising awareness among the global population about the adverse effects of conventional plastics, which has led to both consumers and regulatory bodies opting for bioplastics instead.
The bioplastics packaging market was valued at USD 14.85 billion in 2019 and is expected to reach USD 39.37 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 15% over the forecast period 2020 – 2025. Globally, bio-PET and polylactic acid are the main types of bioplastics used in the bioplastics packaging market.
The government is a major driver for the rise in the global bioplastic packaging market. The net benefit to a country adopting bioplastics on a mass scale is prevention of the ecological damage that would have been caused by conventional plastics. Furthermore, this also removes the need for further resources to fix the damage. The awareness among the general population about the ecological implications is another force driving this market as indicated by the bioplastic packaging market report. Bioplastic packaging can, in fact, be used as a USP by packaging companies targeting environmentally conscious consumers and this in turn can lead to ean expansion in their bioplastic packaging market size.
Europe is currently among the largest regional markets for bioplastic packaging. The EU has been supportive of several environmental protection initiatives and several countries in Europe have incentivized bioplastic packaging, driving the regional bioplastic packaging market. Once the price gap between bioplastics and conventional plastics is eradicated, Asia Pacific could make rapid progress in the global bioplastic packaging market.
Bioplastic packaging market research shows the Key players in the global bioplastic packaging market are BASF SE, Koninklijke DSM N.V., NatureWorks, LLC, Metabolix, Inc., and The Dow Chemical Company.
