Global Liquid Carton Market (by Shelf Life, Type, End Use, & Region): Insights and Forecast with Potential Impact of COVID-19 (2022-2027)

Liquid packaging cartons are containers that allow liquid items to be transported and stored safely. These cartons are mostly used to pack fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG). Liquid packing cartons come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and application kinds, and they are simple to design and model to meet the needs of the packager.

The market would expand in the coming years as a result of increased packaged beverage consumption, rising health and wellness expenditure, and rapid urbanization. The global liquid carton market is projected to reach US$15.64 billion in 2023, witnessing growth at a CAGR of 3.17%, during the forecasted. Furthermore, the global liquid carton market volume is expected to rise to 246.60 billion units by 2023, growing at a CAGR of 4.02%, during the forecasted projected period.

Segment Covered

By Shelf Life: On the basis of the shelf life, the report provides the bifurcation of the global liquid carton market into two segments: Aseptic Liquid Carton and Fresh Liquid Carton. Aseptic liquid carton segment held a major share in the market. On the other hand, the Fresh liquid carton segment is expected to grow at a significant CAGR in the forthcoming years owing to the growing health and fitness trend, convenience and distribution efficiency and growing use of sustainable alternative.

By Type: In terms of type, the report provides the bifurcation of the market into three segments: Brick liquid carton, gable top carton and shaped liquid carton. The brick liquid carton segment held largest share in the market. This was being followed by gable top carton and shaped liquid carton segment.

By End Use: The report provides the bifurcation of the market into three segments based on the end use: Dairy products, juice and others. The dairy products segment held highest share in the fresh liquid carton liquid carton market, as well as in the aseptic liquid carton market.

Geographic Coverage

According to this report, the liquid carton market can be divided into five major regions, namely North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & North Africa and Latin America. The countries covered in North America region are the US, Mexico, Canada, while Europe includes UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy and Rest of Europe. Moreover, China, Japan, India, South Korea and Rest of Asia Pacific are included in the Asia Pacific region. Asia Pacific held the major share in the market, owing to rising demand for packaged milk and increasing consumer awareness regarding highly sustainable packaging in this region. Within Europe, Germany is leading the market, due to increasing demand of plant based beverages. Whereas, in the North America region, the US is dominating the market due to increase in disposable income and change in lifestyles.

Top Impacting Factors
Growth Drivers

- Increased Consumption of Packaged Beverages
- Growing Health & Wellness Spending
- Convenience and Distribution Efficiency
- Longer Shelf Life

Challenges

- Surge in Usage of Alternative Packaging Material
- Reduced Milk Consumption

Trends

- Increased Consumption of Milk Alternatives
- Surge in Consumption of Ready to Drink Beverages
- Innovative and Attractive Packaging
- Expansion of Different Industries

Driver: Longer Shelf Life

Introduction of aseptic cartons in the market has boosted the growth of this liquid packaging carton market as they are known for increased shelf life of liquid products. Aseptic cartons are primarily made of paperboard, with thin layers of plastic and aluminum. These cartons help to preserve food over a substantial period of time without adding preservatives. This type of packaging thus help consumers to keep food and beverages around for a lot longer than the typical shelf-life. This encourages the consumers to buy beverages in bulk as the content remain fresh for a substantial period of time. This increases the demand of packed beverages which directly supplements the growth of liquid packaging carton market.

Challenge: Surge in Usage of Alternative Packaging Material

Consumers prefer a plastic container for packaging of the liquid food product as it offers easy transportation and is cost-effective. Also, High-density polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are highly preferred plastic material as it is lightweight, corrosion resistance, and offers excellent thermal insulation properties. Furthermore, high price of raw materials used to manufacture packaging cartons for beverages persuade the consumers to switch to alternative packaging. This is expected to restrict the demand for liquid packaging cartons.

Trend: Expansion of Different Industries

Liquid packaging carton manufacturers can tap into the homecare products market by providing easy handling and environment-friendly packaging solutions. Moreover, the advent of twist cap for liquid packaging cartons is another major trend observed in the liquid packaging market for providing easy handling and closure options for the consumers. Hence, this trend would help the manufacturers to expand to different industries such as homecare, beauty and lifestyle. Products such as dishwashing liquids, washing machine liquids, serums, facial oils can be stored in the liquid cartons as they are both travel friendly and convenient to use. This is expected to augment the market growth of the liquid packaging cartons over the forecast period.

The COVID-19 Analysis

In the wake of COVID-19, the food & beverage industry saw dramatic impact which affected the liquid packaging carton market negatively. During the initial phase of COVID-19 restrictions, the unprecedented lockdowns across various countries created a havoc among the consumers. This led the stockpiling of packaged beverages such as juices and dairy items thus increasing the demand for liquid packaging cartons during the initial period of COVID-19 restrictions. In later phases of the lockdown, aluminum shortages from the closing of recycling operations and flavoring shortages affected soda companies. From the food services sector, when arenas and sporting venues were closed, demand for packaged food and beverages declined thus reducing the use of liquid packaging cartons. Though at-home consumption of packaged beverages increased, but out-of-home consumption - which historically generates the highest margin came to nearly a standstill.

Analysis of Key Players

The global liquid carton market is dominated by Tetra Pak (Tetra Laval Group), by occupying around two-third share of the market. The key players in the global liquid carton market are Mondi plc, Tetra Laval Group, Refresco Group B.V., Pactiv Evergreen Inc., SIG Combibloc Group AG, Greatview Aseptic Packaging Company, BillerudKorsnäs, Ferd Group, Liquid Box, Nippon Paper Industries Co., Ltd., Uflex Limited, Adam Pack S.A., and Smurfit Kappa Group plc.

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