Analysis of the Development Trends of China's Paper Products Packaging Industry

(1) The paper products packaging industry is showing steady development

In recent years, China's paper products packaging industry has maintained steady development, the ranks of above-scale enterprises have continued to grow, and industry revenue scale and profit levels have remained stable. According to statistics from the China Packaging Federation, in 2022 above-scale enterprises in China's paper products packaging industry achieved main business revenue of 304.547 billion yuan, down 4.81% year on year; the average annual compound growth rate from 2014 to 2022 was about 4.01%.

Growth trend of revenue scale in China's paper packaging industry, 2014-2022 (unit: 100 million yuan)

Note: data from the China Packaging Federation, adjusted for statistical scope

(2) Against the broader backdrop of “replacing plastic”, demand for eco-friendly paper bags keeps growing steadily

Eco-friendly paper bags have become indispensable products in modern life, featuring green environmental protection, attractive appearance and a premium look. In recent years, market demand for eco-friendly paper bags has grown steadily, and more and more consumer settings — shopping malls, supermarkets, retail stores and pharmacies — have begun using paper bags widely. According to

the report “Global Paper Bags Market: Industry Size, Share, Growth, Analysis and Forecast, 2018-2025” published by the institution Zion Market Research, the global paper bag market was worth US$4.7 billion in 2018 and is expected to reach US$6.35 billion by 2025, a compound annual growth rate of 4.4% from 2019 to 2025.

On 19 January 2020, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment issued the “Opinions on Further Strengthening the Control of Plastic Pollution”, which explicitly proposed “promoting the application of alternative products. In venues such as shopping malls, supermarkets, pharmacies and bookstores, promote the use of non-plastic products such as eco-friendly cloth bags and paper bags as well as degradable shopping bags, and encourage the installation of self-service, smart dispensing devices to make life easier for the public. Promote the use of degradable packaging film (bags) for fresh products.” As domestic environmental policies are implemented in greater depth and public environmental awareness strengthens, the process of “replacing plastic” will accelerate. In the coming years, the market size of China's eco-friendly paper bag industry will grow steadily.

(3) Demand for food packaging grows steadily

Under the influence of worsening global environmental problems, domestic green environmental policies and growing consumer awareness of food safety and health, paper-based food packaging is widely welcomed by consumers; at the same time, because of its own single-use nature, market consumption is fast, giving it good industry development prospects.

As the pace of people's work and life accelerates, dining out, fast dining and food delivery will gradually become the dining habits of more and more consumers; at the same time, as the idea of “opposing food waste” takes hold, “taking leftovers home in a doggy bag” will become a common form of dining consumption, which will continue to increase demand for paper-based food packaging. According to the “2019 China Life Service E-commerce Market Data Report” published by the 100EC E-commerce Research Centre, in 2019 China's online food delivery market size was expected to reach 291.25 billion yuan, up 17.43% from the previous year, and the number of online food ordering users was expected to reach 423 million.

Growth trend of China's online food delivery market size and user numbers, 2015-2019

(4) China's per capita paper packaging consumption has substantial room to grow

In terms of total volume, although China's packaging paper market has developed rapidly in recent years, per capita consumption is only US$12 per year, still a considerable gap compared with major countries worldwide and far from the industry's “ceiling”. As people's consumption levels rise, their demands on quality of life will rise accordingly, and the market size of the packaging paper industry and the downstream paper products consumption industry is expected to expand further.

China's packaging paper consumption is rising steadily

China's per capita packaging consumption is significantly lower than that of developed countries (US$/year)

Data source: February industry dynamics report on the light industry and papermaking sector, China Galaxy Securities

— This article is reprinted from the China Packaging Network (pack.cn). Original link: http://news.pack.cn/show-379440.html