3 market influences shaping juice packaging today

Moiz Aden

Juice packaging—one of the most exciting areas in beverages today—is seeing advancements in shelf life, convenience and sustainability.

1. Extended shelf life/freshness

We are still seeing strong demand for packaged vegetable and fruit juice among health-conscious populations. Functional innovations center on packaging that can effectively protect the shelf life and purity of vegetable and fruit juice products throughout storage and transportation. Thus, there is a constant demand for better packaging materials that can offer increased barrier for packaged juice products.

The rising demand for barrier resins in juice packaging is a recent case in point. In recent years, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) packaging for juice has gathered considerable steam in various parts of the world as juice producers increasingly tap PET with an oxygen barrier to effectively protect the shelf life of packaged juice.

The trend has given rise to several acquisitions by raw material producers in emerging markets. For instance, Indorama Ventures Ltd. (IVL) recently announced its acquisition of Custom Polymers PET. The move will enable IVL to use PET packaging with oxygen barriers to serve the current and emerging needs of various vertical markets, including juice packaging.

2. Convenience

Convenience of packaging for manufacturers—as well as for its consumption—has emerged as an increasingly important determinant of worldwide consumer demand.

For example, a growing demand for various types of flexible packaging that score well on consumer convenience has bolstered the market for bag-in-box. And rising health and hygiene concerns among consumers will further bring advancements in functional flexible packaging, especially single-use packs.

3. Sustainability

The environmental footprint of juice packaging continues to be a key factor shaping the market for juice producers and retailers. New juice packages have surfaced in various developing and developed regions in response to these emerging environmental requirements. In particular, recyclable packaging has become more popular.

The focus on lessening the environmental footprints of packaging used for juice products is catalyzing the use of eco-friendly resins for packaging. As a result, biomaterials are generating vast interest among packaging manufacturers, especially in developed markets.

According to a study by Transparency Market Research, the global juice packaging market is expected to grow from strength-to-strength, driven by these demands. Juice producers will continue to see increased momentum from design improvements, specifically packages that effectively communicate their value to consumers and provide unique brand positioning.

Moiz Adenwala is assistant manager at Transparency Market Research, a market intelligence company providing global business information reports and services. The company’s blend of quantitative forecasting and trends analysis—using rigorous primary and secondary research techniques—provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers in a range of markets and regions.

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