Antimicrobial plastic market will be worth US$16.17bn by 2020, forecasts report
Driven by growing consumer awareness of health-related issues, rapid urbanisation, and expanding populations in Asia-Pacific and South America
The size of the antimicrobial plastic market, in value terms, is projected to reach US$16.17bn by 2020, at a CAGR of 8.7%, between 2015 and 2020.
The report, Antimicrobial Plastic Market by Type (Commodity Plastic, Engineering Plastic, and High Performance Plastic) by Application (Healthcare, Packaging, Consumer Goods, Automotive, Construction, and Others) & by Region – Global Forecast to 2020, published by MarketsandMarkets, defines and segments the market and forecasts the market size by value and volume.
Antimicrobial plastics are polymer materials infused with antimicrobial agents and additives such as organic-metallic biocides and arseni-based oxybisphenox arsine (OBPA). They are mainly used to kill micro-organisms such as bacteria, algae and fungi, and inhibit their growth in the end-use products.
Growing consumer awareness of health-related issues, rapid urbanisation and growing populations in the Asia-Pacific and South America regions are driving the expansion of the market, but volatility in raw material prices and stringent regulations are holding back its growth. The manufacturing cost of antimicrobial plastic is high, which increases the overall cost of the existing products and affects the profit margins of the manufacturers.
Unexplored use of antimicrobial plastic in textiles and houseware in emerging markets is expected to offer various opportunities to antimicrobial plastic manufacturers.
Healthcare is the key application of antimicrobial plastic
Commodity plastic is the key type of antimicrobial plastic, followed by engineering and high-performance plastic. It is also the largest segment, accounting for a 60% share of the market, dominated by the Asia-Pacific region and followed by North America and Europe. The engineering plastic segment is projected to have the highest CAGR of 8.8% over the forecast period.
Healthcare is the key application of antimicrobial plastic, with a one-third market share, followed by packaging and consumer goods. The Asia-Pacific region dominates the market for healthcare applications, followed by North America and Europe. Healthcare and packaging applications are projected to witness the highest CAGR of 8.8%, between 2015 and 2020.
The leading players in the market include BASF (Germany), Bayer MaterialScience (Germany), Dow Chemical (US), Clariant (Switzerland), Lonza Group (Switzerland), Microban International (US), Parx Plastic (The Netherlands), King Plastic (US), Biocote (UK), Milliken Chemical (US), Sanitized (Switzerland), and PolyOne (US).
