Sales	2007	2012
Worldwide:	US$ 564 bn	US$ 666 bn
of which
Beverages and food:		56%
Industry and bulk materials:		20%
Cosmetics and healthcare:		8%
Others:		16%

 

Europe:	US$ 192 bn	US$ 222 bn
America:	US$ 185 bn	US$ 207 bn
Asia/Oceania:	US$ 173 bn	US$ 219 bn
Africa:	US$ 14 bn	US$ 18 bn

Growth markets for sales/production
 
China

• Highest growth rates worldwide
• Will become the second-largest consumer of packaging worldwide
• Rising standard of living
• Growing population in the cities
• Rising consciousness of healthcare
• Above-average growth in stable plastic packaging and flexible packaging of plastic and paper

Eastern Europe

• Strongly expanding market
• Trend is still strong for:
• Eye-catching, loud, bright packaging
• Exclusive look and decorative packaging
• Functionality, e.g. re-closing or drinking yoghurt in plastic bottles
• Demand for convenience and small packaging is rising because of the growing number of single households
• Bio or bio-look packaging is not accepted by the consumers who regard it as 'cheap' and of poor quality  

Russia

• High growth rates in the coming years
• Per-capita consumption lower than in other Eastern European countries
• Rising standards of design and quality in packaging
• Expansion and modernization of Russian facilities necessary

India

• Double-digit growth rates in the coming years, because of rising demand for processed foods, beverages and pharmaceuticals
• In the coming years, India will be the third-largest packaging market in the world
• Indian packaging industry is still in the early stages of development
• Attractive and hygienic packaging for domestically produced foods is becoming an ever more important factor in sales
• Domestic manufacturers have to adapt product packaging to international standards, if they are going to be able to export  

Opportunities in established markets
 
USA, Japan, Western Europe

• Largest markets in the world
• Markets relatively saturated
• Changing demand because of demographic change (see commercial trends)
• Above-average growth in stable plastic packaging and flexible packaging of plastic and foil  

Technology trends

• Plastic packaging is becoming more important
• Bio-packaging
• High-quality packaging for high-quality foods
• Transparent packaging for foods
• Stable plastic packaging
• Flexible packaging
• Re-closing packaging  

Commercial trends

• Key demographic engines for growth in the worldwide packaging industry are:
• Increasing health-consciousness
• Ageing population
• Rising number of one-person households
• Higher proportion of working women
• Consumers who increasingly make use of convenience products  
• Environmental consciousness is increasing demand for cardboard packaging  

 
Sources: VDMA Nahrungsmittel- und Verpackungsmaschinen, VDMA Kunststoff- und Gummimaschinen, european bioplastics, Freedonia, Euromonitor