Moulded fibre packaging has emerged as one of the prime candidates for replacing plastic packaging in many applications. Innovation in manufacturing technology, especially thermoformed wet and dry-moulded fibre, has enable this type of product to compete with thermoformed plastic packaging.
The moulded fibre market is challenging to assess. It covers a range of products, and a large share of production happens in small and medium-size enterprises. Only for a few certain product groups do we see meaningful consolidation to a few larger multinational suppliers.
China, North America and Europe are the primary locations of production, though new capacity is also coming in Asia and Latam. We provide extensive vetted lists of producers in these regions and estimate their capacities.
Raw materials range from wastepaper to BEKP, BCTMP, various non-wood fibres and even fluff pulp. We explain the different raw material choices of producers depending on technology and target applications.
We compare production costs, including Capex and tooling costs for various technologies.
Production forecasts are presented in tonnes and converted to pulp demand by raw material, technology and end-use.