The ‘fizz’ returns to beverage packaging

13 January 2011



Over the past two years, an unwelcome combination of global economic downturn, declining consumer spending power, volatile packaging materials prices and more difficult access to capital investment has resulted in a slowdown and in longer term beverage packaging design trends - but things are starting to change, according to a new report from Canadean.


For many years the key drivers of beverage packaging design were increased use of added value and convenience features, more sophisticated packaging materials, smaller ‘on-the-go’ packs, more elaborate shapes, designs and print. However, over the past two years the focus has shifted strongly to cost and cost-related factors such as materials reduction, lightweighting and improvements in line efficiency, filling techniques and cost-effectiveness; all to be achieved, wherever possible, without compromising functionality or quality; and at the same or a lower price.

As some countries have begun to emerge from recession in 2010, there are signs that the underlying long-term economic, demographic and consumer-led changes are beginning to have the upper influence again, causing packaging design to revert to trend.

These are the findings of Canadean’s latest special interest report entitled Innovation in Beverage Packaging, 2010, which examines key developments in beverage packaging design over the past two years at a global level.

With deteriorating economic conditions, falling consumer spending power and rising employment in many countries worldwide, competition at retail level has increased enormously since 2008, resulting in strong downward pressure on product and hence packaging pricing.

The main beneficiaries of this were initially the discount retailers, which achieved accelerated growth in many countries worldwide by taking share from the supermarkets as consumers searched for greater value for money. In response, many supermarket chains revamped and extended their own ranges to compete with the discounters at the value end of the market, resulting in an explosion of private label worldwide and yet more competition and pressure on product and packaging prices.

As some countries have begun to come out of recession in 2010, this strategy appears to have paid off for the supermarkets as, although still currently dominated by materials reduction and cost considerations, there appear to be early signs of a return in packaging design toward value added and convenience features.

Key global trends in the past two years include:

¦ Continued PET growth in most beverage categories – with rPET taking share again in carbonates and packaged water.

¦ Hot fill PET being increasingly used for hot fill juices and nectars and panel-less hot fill PET bottles taking share in various markets such as iced RTD tea and coffee.

¦ Extended use of biodegradable plastics.

¦ General shift from heavy, rigid containers to lighter weight, flexible packaging and pouches.

¦ Increase in the growth rate of barrier plastics.

¦ Lightweighting and materials saving measures extending from the major to the smaller brands.

¦ Reduction in bottle and closure weights without loss of performance and functionality.

¦ Greater emphasis on environmental issues and a shift in concern from packaging waste and recycling towards carbon emissions and total environmental impact of product and pack.

With domestic consumption taking off strongly in China (the single greatest powerhouse of global packaging demand) and other emerging markets, it is expected that, whilst cost performance and environmental factors will always remain key drivers of packaging demand, rising disposable income levels, a return to trading up and convenience features and underlying demographic changes (such as long term trends toward smaller household sizes, longer working hours, urbanisation and globalisation), will resurface as the key drivers of packaging innovation and change in the coming years.

Canadean is the leading supplier of information, marketing research and consultancy services to the global beverage and beverage packaging industries.

In August 2010, Canadean became part of Progressive Digital Marketing, a division of Global Trade Media, which publishes Packaging Today.


Source: Canadean. Canadean

Canadean Canadean


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