E-commerce Plastic Packaging Market Size

E-commerce Plastic Packaging Market Analysis

The E-commerce Plastic Packaging Market size is estimated at USD 26.97 billion in 2024, and is expected to reach USD 50.69 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 13.46% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

Packaging and labeling directly impact the sales and profits of a business. E-commerce packaging consists of various packaging solutions made from materials used for content protection, product density management, promotional tools, product identification, and user convenience during handling and logistics. Plastic has been one of the critical materials used in e-commerce packaging.

• Flexible packaging is an ideal format for e-commerce to withstand more touchpoints throughout the shipment process. Moreover, flexible packaging material can prevent spills, resist breakage, and hold products together. Compared to conventional retail, e-commerce products are handled at least three times, according to Plastics Today. Flexible packaging also drives shipping cost efficiencies as the billable weight for a package is usually determined by whichever value is the greater, actual, or dimensional weight. Therefore, more space-efficient formats like flexible plastic packaging drive lower shipping prices and are hence most prevalent in the e-commerce sector.
• Moreover, flexible plastic packaging has presented difficulties with recycling because it is generally comprised of various layers that require to be separated to become feasible. Many market players are now working to develop more simple materials that can be easily recycled. The players in the plastic packaging industry are developing mono-polymer flexible packaging laminates to ensure circularity while capitalizing on the many benefits of the flexible plastic packaging format.
• Plastic packaging can contain residues from substances used during the manufacturing process, such as solvents, along with non-intentionally added substances (NIAS), such as oligomers, impurities, or degradation products. There are increasing concerns over additives used to manufacture virgin plastics that complicate recycling or pose risks to human or ecological health. For manufacturers of recycled plastics, uncertainty about the presence of these additives in plastic waste can hinder recycling altogether. The lack of information and transparency regarding the use of additives in some plastic waste streams is thus a significant barrier to the increased recycling of those products and, in turn, to the market studied.
• The COVID-19 pandemic undoubtedly increased awareness about the flexible packaging of e-commerce products. The crisis fueled the online retail boom, significantly disrupting shopping and consumption habits, especially among the rural population who had hitherto been buying from retail stores. Furthermore, the Russia-Ukraine war had an immediate impact on the e-commerce packaging industry and the packaging industry as a whole by raising the prices of raw materials and affecting how businesses operated.