Moderate growth in agricultural films market uptil 2019, as biodegradable variants gain

02-Mar-15

Agricultural films will be a US$9.66 bln market by 2019, rising at a 7.6% CAGR between 2013 and 2019, as per Transparency Market Research. This market reported revenues of about US$ 5.87 bln in 2012. The study also forecasts that in terms of volume, the market will expand at a 5.7% CAGR between 2013 and 2019. In 2012, the demand for agricultural films was 4,410.3 kilo tons. The major factors promoting the growth of the agricultural films market are: Exponential rise in the demand for food, depletion in land available for cultivation, and the pressing need to improve agricultural productivity. Global farming practices are becoming more technically-sophisticated, creating further scope for the growth of the global agricultural films market. In contrast, the market will also have to face strong headwinds in the form of concerns pertaining to the large-scale use of non-biodegradable plastics and the steep costs associated with disposing of these materials. Going forward, companies that are able to bring a wider variety of reasonably-priced biodegradable agricultural films to the market will carry a competitive advantage. An analyst from TMR stated, "Biodegradable agricultural films suited for applications such as silage, mulching, and greenhouse present the greatest opportunity in this market currently. Farmers are using reclaimed films in higher numbers because environmental laws compel them to do so." TMR analysts observe that the LDPE market held the highest share in 2012, at 55%. The report also projects that by the end of 2019, the global consumption of LDPE agricultural films will likely reach 1,470.8 kilo tons The report also studies this market on the basis of application as: Silage, mulching, and greenhouse. While mulching was the most dominant application in 2012 with a 40% market share, the greenhouse agricultural films segment will register rapid growth rate hereon. "However, in areas with a high number of pastures, the demand for silage films will remain robust," the TMR analyst further stated.