Molded Pulp Packaging Market Trends

Growth Drivers

• Growing Packaging Waste – After the life of molded pulp packaging expires, it can be recycled again to use in different industries. Moreover, it is lightweight and reduces excess space. Thus, curbing the packaging waste. Nowadays, 91% of packaging trash of the world is dumped in landfills or the environment.
• Rising Need for Sustainable Packaging– the production of molded pulp does not emit as much carbon dioxide as produced in other packaging material. Moreover, they are easily decomposed thus driving the packaging industry towards sustainability. In the United Kingdom, around 77% of consumers demand sustainable packaging from businesses. Moreover, nearly 50% of people agreed to pay more for the product if it is sustainably packed.
• Increasing Trends of Online Shopping –Online shopping or E-commerce is expected to boost the demand for packaging and is likely to create more opportunities for molded pulp packaging. In 2020, more than 1 billion people worldwide shopped online. Furthermore, this number jumped to more than 2 billion in 2021.
• Growing Consumption of Packaged Food – Molded pulp packaging is a safer option than toxic aluminum and petroleum packaging which is highly used in the food industry. The consumption value of packaged organic foods in India totaled USD 15 million in 2021. When compared to the prior year, the consumption value was around USD 14 million.
• Rising Efforts to Reduce Plastic – With the growing concern about the use of single-use plastics, molded pulp packaging is becoming more popular worldwide. According to the World Economic Forum, 170 countries made a commitment in 2019 to reduce their use of plastic by 2030.  Furthermore, many have already begun by suggesting or enacting regulations for specific single-use plastics.

Challenges

• Presence of Other Options for Biodegradable Packaging - The other alternatives to molded pulp packaging are corrugated cardboard and mushroom foam. Mushroom foam resembles ordinary paper molded pulp in appearance and operation. On the other hand, corrugated cardboard can offer just as much security as polystyrene as a structural support system. Moreover, it is more affordable, eco-friendly, and highly recyclable.
• High Cost of Pulp Packaging - Molded pulp packaging is a viable solution for eco-friendly packaging, and switching to eco-friendly packaging can be expensive and especially for small enterprises. The cost of production of pulp packaging is expensive, moreover, it is further burdened by fluctuating prices of the raw material. However, the practice of using molded pulp packaging can be cost-effective in long run but it is hard to predict the specific time. Therefore, it becomes expensive to deploy the pulp packaging and is expected to hamper the molded pulp packaging market growth.
• Pulp Packaging Cannot Support Heavy Items.