Cartoning drives mass market brands

According to a report by Euromonitor​ carton packaging is expected to continue Carton packaging is clearly led by the tobacco and food industries throughout the world, and it is the Asia Pacific region that leads the way in terms of market size, representing a total of 100 billion units produced a year. In no other region does tobacco packaging play such a vial role to the segment, but equally it is this region that cosmetics applications represent the largest share of the market.

According to market report author Peta Conn, Western Europe comes a close second with 87 billion units of carton packaging produced each year, while the US market accounts for almost half the annual production found in Asia Pacific with around 55 billion units produced each year. However, looking at the production figures for cosmetics packaging, the reverse is true. This is because big pushes on secondary packaging by cosmetics companies in the US have helped to push unit production there, a fact that has been mirrored to a lesser degree in Western Europe.

Overall the Western European market for folding cartons exhibited annual growth rates of around 2 per cent between 1998 and 2003, measured in actual packs sold - a figure that was replicated in the cosmetics segment.

Besides growth being made in the cosmetics and toiletries area, Euromonitor also reports that strong inroads have continued to be made by mass market packaging for niche categories such as wipes and dishwashing tablets in household care.

The report says that whilst the shift to mass market brands in cosmetics and toiletries around Western Europe has slowed premium folding carton applications, demand has been sustained by the continued elevation of mass market brands to replicate the image of premium counterparts.

This means that whilst there has been a shift to mass market brands in cosmetics, fragrances and skin care, carton manufacturers can tap into the growing potential of higher value mass market brands, which are increasingly being packaged in secondary cartons. Brands such as Olay, L'Oréal and Nivea with increased product segmentation have contributed to growth, notably in areas such as anti-ageing skin care, where a plethora of products have entered the market in recent years.

In Europe, Euromonitor sees sustained growth for the folding carton industry, with the cosmetics sector maintaining its slow but steady expansion of the past six years. Taking into account that annual growth rates will continue at around 2 per cent for the industry as a whole, the total number of cartons produced in Europe by 2007 is expected to hit 92 billion units.