Packaging trends and demands: new study available

North America’s beverage packaging industry is expected to reach US$26.3 billion by 2015 - and plastic bottles are set to lead the way in popularity. The trends have been outlined in a new study by the Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies (PMMI) entitled ‘Beverage Packaging - An Industry Assessment’.

Findings from the study include:

• Plastic continues to be the most widely used bottling material, accounting for more than 40% of the market.
• For beverages, bottles are the most popular packaging format, holding approximately 55% of the market.
• Despite experiencing a drop in soft drink sales, aluminium cans are increasing in popularity as energy drinks and microbrewery beer experience growth.
• While flexible pouches have experienced the slowest growth, many in the industry anticipate increased adoption in the future. Key to this is products geared to consumers accustomed to beverages, such as juice, in pouches.

The study also addresses key trends such as packaging size and dimension ratios, openings that offer a finer drinking experience, resealability for portion control, different pack sizes to meet specific market demands, and colours and graphics to cut through the clutter on store shelves. Additional details are given on trends, the supply chain, government regulation, concerns and additional needs of the industry. The executive summary can be accessed at www.pmmi.org.