North America Glass Bottles/Containers Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, Forecasts (2021 - 2026)

The North America Glass Bottles and Containers Market is expected to reach a CAGR of 3.52% during the forecast period (2021 - 2026). Glass packaging is considered for premium products and a gold standard in various industries such as pharmaceuticals, food and beverages, cosmetics, and liquor packaging. The demand is varying in various markets during the onset of COVID-19 owing to the performance of the end-user industry in global markets.

The beverage industry holds a prominent share of the global packaging demand for glass. The outbreak of the COVID-19 liquor industry is observing a significant drop in demand though it is deemed as an essential industry by governments.

Key Highlights

• The beer industry has seen a dramatic decline both in retail sales and jobs that rely on our nation’s most popular alcohol beverage. In September 2020, the Beer Institute, in partnership with the Brewers Association (BA), the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) and the American Beverage Licensees (ABL), released a report from a leading economic firm showing more than 568,000 jobs supported by the U.S. beer industry disappeared in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. These job losses include more than 3,200 brewing jobs, 1,700 distributing jobs and 360,000 retail-related jobs. The report concluded that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a USD 20 billion decline in retail beer sales.
• Glass bottles and containers are majorly used in the alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage industry, due to their ability to maintain chemical inertness, sterility, and non-permeability.
• Alcoholic drinks, like beer, accounted for the largest segment of the market, as glass does not react with the chemicals present in drinks and, therefore, preserves the aroma, strength, and flavor of these beverages, making it a favorable option for packaging. Due to this reason, a majority of the beer volume is transported in glass bottles, and this trend is expected to continue over the study period.
• In February 2020, Ardagh Group Glass – North America announced a long-term supply agreement with Copper Cane Wines & Provisions to manufacture all its 750ml wine bottles in the United States., beginning with its 2019 Vintage Series. This partnership connects Napa Valley’s Copper Cane Wines & Provisions with Ardagh’s Madera, California, glass manufacturing facility, helping to keep the winery’s promise to stay local and sustainable by reducing its environmental footprint.
• Other factors driving the growth of the market studied are the increasing demand for glass bottles from the healthcare industry. The rise in the disposable income of people is also a major factor, propelling the growth of the market, as consumers tend to demand more effective and aesthetic packaging design.

Key Market Trends

Beverages Segment is Expected to Witness Significant Growth

• Beverages hold the maximum market share in the market studied. With consumers getting increasingly careful about what they consume and in what material it is packaged, the perception towards glass is increasingly becoming positive due to the prime reason that glass is the neutral packaging material with an almost zero rate of chemical interaction ensuring product integrity.
• For instance, in March 2020, Ardagh Group, Glass expanded its production at Wilson, North Carolina, plant. It partnered with O'Connor Brewing Company to manufacture all of its 12oz long-neck glass bottles. The 12oz long-neck amber beer bottles for O'Connor Brewing Company is likely to be designed and manufactured by Ardagh Group using 100% recyclable amber glass.
• As more and more population is turning toward eco-friendly solutions to increase their contribution, glass packaging is seen as an endless recyclable alternative to plastic packaging. Glass can be 100% recycled as well as re-usable, without losing quality. According to a survey by G&S Business Communications, glass bottles and jars came out on top, with 57% of the US consumers believing that it is the most sustainable.
• Besides, governments across the world are imposing bans on plastic packaging in beverages, due to which beverage companies, such as Coke and PepsiCo, are trying to avoid plastic packaging. For instance, PepsiCo is looking to prevent the use of 67 billion plastic bottles through 2025, and the alternate for that is expected to be glass bottles.
• Moreover, industry estimates have suggested that US on-premise channel sells accounts USD 10 billion of alcohol. But, as per Rabobank’s survey, the ban on sit-down dining could lead to losses of between USD 15-20 billion in alcohol. Whereas, on the e-commerce channels for alcohol sales are picking up rapidly. For instance, the delivery platform, named Drizly announced that sales from new customers have been 500% higher along with sales from repeat customers increased to 125%.

United States is Expected to Account for Major Market Share

• The US production of glass containers is limited to only a few manufacturers with a dependence on recycling. As per Glass Packaging Institute, in April 2020, the consumer purchases of core grocery store pantry items has increased significantly by end of February 2020.
• The glass bottle and jar production has been categorized as essential to meet continued and increasing consumer demand, across the region. The domestic glass container industry manufacturers over 25 billion food and beverage containers on average and is, therefore, required to stay operational. Moreover, the workers involved in the production and transportation of chlorine and alkali manufacturing, single-use plastics, and glass container manufacturing were termed as critical manufacturing by the CISA to support the continued manufacture of food, water, medicine, and other essential products in the wake of increasing COVID-19 spread.
• The Glass Packaging Institute (GPI), realized the fact that glass container manufacturing facilities utilize high-temperature furnaces with a run-time of 24 hours a day.
• Additionally, the glass manufacturers are observed increasing capacity as orders form the beverage industry increases, particularly the alcohol segment. The consumption is happening mostly via e-commerce, and off premise sales like in grocery shops. Shoppers are primarily looking for larger formats and lower-priced products.
• The United States also dominates the pharmaceutical market, both in consumption and development. According to STAT, prescription drug spending in the nation is considered to add up to USD 600 billion by 2023, up from an estimated USD 500 billion in 2019, which is further expected to drive the market for glass bottles and containers in the country.
• However, the ongoing trade war between the United States and China may impact the glass packaging market in the country. Ardagh Group mentioned that over 70% of the US wine industry glass bottles are imported from China; and due to increase in the tariff rate imposed on China imports, the need for improving glass manufacturing infrastructure is expected to rise, leading to increase in the overall cost of the product in coming years.

Competitive Landscape

The degree of competition depends on various factors affecting the market, such as brand identity, powerful competitive strategy, and degree of transparency. The major factors governing this force are a sustainable competitive advantage through innovation, levels of market penetration, barriers to exit, power of competitive strategy, and firm concentration ratio. With innovations in this market, the sustainable competitive advantage is growing. For instance, The level of market penetration is high, while advertising expense is moderate. The power of competitive strategy is also supportive, while the firm concentration is moderate. As strong brands are synonymous with good performance, long-standing vendors are expected to have an upper hand. With many large players actively competing in the market, the competitive rivalry within the industry is High.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support