Global demand for plastic films is set to grow at an average annual rate of 4% in the next five years, according to a new report from rubber, plastics and composites testing firm Smithers Rapra.
According to its new report – The Future of Global Plastic Films to 2021 - Smithers Rapra said demand during the forecast period 2016–21 will reach 73.3 million tonnes, up from the current forecast of 61.3 million tonnes for the calendar year 2016.
Smithers Rapra said the development of the global plastic films market was dependent upon a number of socioeconomic trends, ranging from economic influences, lifestyle and demographics changes, to the development of new materials and packaging technologies and emerging trends in end-use markets.
Report author Philip Drachman said: “The trends of sustainability and lightweighting continue to account for the downgauging of plastic films to accommodate both suppliers suffering from reduced margins as a result of low polymer prices, and consumer demands for reduced packaging due to environmental issues and lifestyle changes.
“Many traditional plastic films however have reached the limits of this trend, and will begin to be promoted in terms of the precycling benefits of these films versus rigid films and packaging, since once they are produced, they generate little or no waste and can therefore reduce waste at source, so that it is eliminated before it is even created.”
In 2015, the largest segment of the plastic film market was automated packaging film, with sales reaching 20 million tonnes. The second largest was plastic bags and sacks with total sales reaching 19.7 million tonnes, but this was forecast to maintain a low growth rate over the next five years due to bag bans and levies.
