Food-grade Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) Packaging Market Size (2024 - 2029)

Food-grade Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) Packaging Market Analysis

The Food-grade Post-Consumer Recycled Packaging Market size in terms of shipment volume is expected to grow from 5.86 Million tonnes in 2024 to 8.37 Million tonnes by 2029, at a CAGR of 7.38% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

• The increasing need for reducing energy use, lowering emissions, promoting a circular economy, achieving sustainability targets, reducing packaging waste, FDA and other regulations for contact-sensitive applications, and regulatory pressure are the major factors propelling the demand for food-grade post-consumer recycling packaging solutions.
• Packaging recycling rates worldwide are increasing due to the development of recycling infrastructure, advanced recycling processes, effective processing techniques, and positive government response. This will result in increased availability of post-consumer recycled material. According to the Environment Agency, the packaging recycling target in the United Kingdom is expected to reach 80% by the end of 2024, compared to 77% in 2023. The increasing recycling rate is expected to aid the growth of food-grade post-consumer recycling packaging solutions.
• End-user brands are trying to adhere to regulatory measures to stay ahead of the competition and address the growing consumer awareness for post-consumer recycled packaging. For instance, Keurig Dr Pepper, an American beverage company, committed to reducing virgin plastic use by 20% across the company's product packaging portfolio by 2025 and increasing recycled content in plastic packaging.
• Packaging manufacturers are developing innovative, contact-sensitive, post-consumer recycled packaging solutions using advanced technologies. Furthermore, raw material manufacturers, providers, and converters are adopting the latest recycling technology to offer food-grade PCR material.
• In 2024, Borealis AG received letters of no objection (LNOs) from the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for its Borcycle M post-consumer recycled plastics (PCR) used for food-grade packaging. This material is sensitive to packaging applications, including cosmetics, personal care, and food contact. The company developed Borcycle M post-consumer recycled plastics (PCR) using transformational mechanical recycling technology. This technology offers post-consumer plastic waste another life in an energy-efficient way.
• Besides this, the need for more material availability due to the improper recycling of plastic material creates supply issues. The improperly discarded packaging material creates contamination problems during recycling, which may hamper the market's growth. The continuous effort by the recyclers and increasing investments driven by EPR are projected to improve recycling collection and infrastructure. This is expected to overcome the concern of material availability.

Food-grade Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) Packaging Industry Segmentation

Food-grade post-consumer recycled packaging refers to packaging materials that are recycled after use and repurposed into new packaging products. The percentage of food-grade post-consumer recycled content varies depending on the packaging type and end-user requirement. The limitation of the market studied is that every segmentation does not include 100% post-consumer recycled content. It depends on various factors such as application, usage, and more. Countries listed are dynamic based on the current status of demand and other factors. The market volume is based on the percentage of food-grade post-consumer recycled material used in the overall packaging.

The food-grade post-consumer recycled (PCR) packaging market is segmented by material (plastic [polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and other plastic materials], glass, metal, and paper and paperboard), product type (bottles and containers, cans, pouches and bags, trays and clamshells, and other product types), end-user industry (food, beverage, personal care and cosmetics, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, and other end-user industries), and geography (North America [United States and Canada], Europe [United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Rest of Europe], Asia-Pacific [China, Japan, India, Australia and New Zealand, and Rest of Asia Pacific], Latin America [Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and Rest of Latin America], and Middle East and Africa [Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Egypt, and Rest of Middle East and Africa]). The market sizes and forecasts are provided in terms of volume (tonnes) for all the above segments.