Formic Acid Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Increasing use as animal feed and silage preservation: Formic acid’s vital role in animal feed and silage preservation is one of the high-earning scopes for key formic acid market players. For instance, as per the analysis by the International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF), annually more than 1 billion tonnes of compound feed is produced globally and the yearly turnover exceeds USD 400 billion. Furthermore, the Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that the global population is foreseen to increase by 2.3 billion people by 2050 and subsequently the food demand will uplift by 70%. Thus, the rising food demand including meat, dairy, and aqua products is set to augment the use of formic acid in livestock feed products to enhance their shelf life and quality.
• Increasing oil and gas demand: In recent years, formic acid has gained high applications in the oil and gas industry. This is primarily due to its ability to enhance well productivity and reservoir performance. The rising industrial and urbanization activities across the world are fueling oil and gas consumption. For instance, the International Energy Agency revealed that the worldwide upstream oil and gas (O & G) investment increased by 11% to USD 528 billion in 2023. Also, the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that global liquid fuel consumption is anticipated to increase from 1.0 million b/d in 2024 to 1.2 million b/d by 2025. Such statistics highlight that the increasing production of oil and gas to meet the global demand is pushing the use of formic acid in acidizing and corrosion resistance of high-temperature and pressure o & g wells.

Challenges

• Easy availability of alternatives: The presence of alternatives often hampers the sales of the primary product. In the case of formic acid, the easy availability of substitutes such as acetic acid, sulfuric acid, and phosphoric acid limits their sales growth to some extent. These alternatives are cost-effective and are less hazardous compared to formic acid, and their similar application areas are creating challenges for formic acid manufacturers.
• Side effects of formic acid: Formic acid is a hazardous chemical compound and high exposure to it can cause severe skin burns and irritation to the eyes. Also, some may witness dizziness, vomiting, headache, and nausea if come in direct contact with formic acid. Such side effects can limit the use of formic acid, affecting their overall sales growth.