Automotive Bioplastic Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Increasing Concern for the Recycling of Vehicle Parts- Several parts of the vehicle are non-recyclable, or their recyclability costs are more. The recyclability rate of bioplastics is high which provides a great competitive edge for the adoption of bioplastics in automotive instead of other conventional available alternatives. On the other hand, as bioplastics have favourable recyclability rate, hence, the concern for the environment generated from plastic wastes is also less, which is also anticipated to drive the growth of the global automotive bioplastic market. For instance, every year, more than 11 million vehicles are recycled in the U.S.
• Growing Automobile Industry: A variety of reasons have contributed to the growth of the automobile industry. One of the key elements impacting growth is increased automotive demand, particularly in emerging markets. Cars, trucks, and other vehicles' demand is expected to rise as economies expand and more people become able to afford them. According to current data, the global automobile sector is anticipated to be worth roughly USD 9 trillion by 2030.
• Growing Demand for Lighter Materials: The automobile industry is always seeking for methods to decrease vehicle weight in order to increase fuel economy and lower emissions. Bioplastics are lighter and can be employed to replace heavy materials such as metals and petroleum-based polymers. Therefore, it is expected to surge the growth of the global automotive bioplastic market. For instance, it has been discovered that lowering a vehicle’s weight by one-tenth can improve mileage and efficiency by up to 5-8%.
• Increasing Consumer Knowledge and Demand for Sustainable, Eco-Friendly Products: Customers are becoming more conscious of the environmental effect of their purchase decisions. As a result, there is an increasing need for environmentally friendly products, such as bioplastics. Study has revealed that over 33% of consumers all around the world are willing to pay higher for more eco-friendly and sustainable products and goods.

Challenges

• High Production Costs of Bioplastics - The production costs of bioplastics are often very high as they are manufactured using raw materials sources from plants, which require huge arable land. Additionally, the fear amongst the farmers whether to grow food crops or cash crops, which might further affect the food grain stock, also hampers the production of cash crops. Such factors raise the cost of production of the raw materials required for the manufacturing of bioplastics, thereby impacting the cost of automotive parts manufactured from bioplastics, which is anticipated to limit the growth of the global automotive bioplastic market throughout the forecast period.
• Some Bioplastics may not be as Durable as Other Plastics
• Inconsistent Availability of Raw Materials