Closures growth sustained by Asian boom and plastics popularity

Updating a two year-old report, the drinks market research specialist said Asia and the popularity of plastic bottles have ensured continued market buoyancy.

Canadean estimates that total demand across the soft drinks and beer markets stood at 1055bn closures in 2010 (including plastic and metal closures, plus ring-pulls). And over the tough economic period of 2008-2010 overall global growth was 2.2 per cent.

Asian success story ​

Asia is the big success story in closures. The region already has a 36 percent share of the market and is estimated to be on track for 7 per cent annual growth between 2003 and 2015.

The transformation of China from an export orientated manufacturing economy to one of growing domestic consumption is the key factor in behind this figure.

All beverage closure types are growing in the region although Canadean analyst Dominic Cakebread told BeverageDaily.com that the strongest growth is in sports caps, carton closures, plastic screw caps and other (largely plastic) closures.

North America and Western Europe, meanwhile, are eking out growth rates of less than 1 per cent per annum.

Plastics dominate ​

In terms of closure type, plastic closures are enjoying the best growth rates in both developed and developing markets. Growth from 2008 to 2010 was 4.2 per cent – almost double the figure for the total closures market.

Explaining the trend, Canadean cited the popularity of the plastic “bottle plus cap format” – especially PET bottles in smaller “on-the-go” sizes.

Canadean analyst Dominic Cakebread added that plastic closures offer much greater versatility than other types like metal that are quite one-dimensional.

The last few years have seen significant innovation in plastic closures – Canadean noted rising use of sports caps and dosing caps. Another big theme is weight reduction – driven by cost efficiency priorities and growing environmental concerns.