FDBusiness.com

Flexible, poultry and ready-to-eat packaging will fuel US meat, poultry and seafood packaging sales to 2017, according to a freshly published report from market research firm The Freedonia Group.

The company forecasts total packaging growth will rise by 3.2% a year, from $8.2bn in 2012 to $9.7bn in 2017.

Flexible packaging demand growth will outpace that of rigid packaging, with pouches and high barrier films leading the way, the study, Meat, Poultry & Seafood Packaging, claims.

The growth will also be driven by flexible packaging making inroads into the rigid packaging market due to its greener credentials in terms of reduced material use and significantly lower shipping costs.

In turn, rigid packaging sales will be limited by the maturity of the market and competitive drawbacks in corrugated boxes, metal cans, folding cartons and paperboard sleeves, the report states.

Poultry packaging

Poultry packaging applications will achieve the fastest growth through 2017, according to the study, which it attributes to the “lower cost and a more favourable nutritional profile” of poultry.

“Meat will continue to be the largest application though growth will slightly trail the overall average. While seafood applications will accelerate from their 2007-2012 performance, advances will lag the overall average due to the growing share of seafood demand that is met by imports.”

Ready-to-eat

The fastest growth from 2012-2017 will be recorded by the ready-to-eat market as time-pressed consumers seek an expanded variety of prepared food for takeout, Freedonia states.

“Gains in the fresh and frozen market will be fuelled by the growing significance of case-ready packaging and MAP (modified atmosphere packaging) to extend the shelf life of fresh meat, poultry and seafood.

“In the processed market, advances will reflect an increased emphasis on higher margin items that are designed to offer convenience.”

Increased production

Gains will also be driven by increased meat, poultry and seafood production along with accelerated foodservice revenue growth, the study maintains.

Prospects for packaging will further benefit from the shift to case-ready packaging among grocery retailers, plus growth in smaller and further-processed convenience foods.

“Heightened demand for single portion and other smaller sized products will reflect the significant level of one and two person households in the US as well as efforts among processors and retailers to hold down selling prices, especially in beef.”