Paper Packaging Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends & Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The Paper and Packaging Industry is segmented by Grade (Carton board (Solid bleached sulfate (SBS), Solid unbleached sulfate (SUS), folding boxboard (FBB), Coated Recycled Board (CRB), Uncoated recycled board (URB)), Containerboard (White-top kraft-liner, Other kraft-liners, White top test-liner, Other test-liners, Semi-chemical fluting, and Recycled fluting)), by Product type (folding cartons, corrugated boxes), by End-user industry (Food, Beverage, Healthcare, Personal care, Household care, Electrical products), and by Geography (North America (United States, Canada), Europe (Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, France, Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, Rest of Asia Pacific), Latin America ( Brazil, Mexico, Rest of Latin America), and Middle East and Africa (United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Rest of the Middle East and Africa)). The market sizes and forecasts are provided in value USD for all the above segments.

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Paper Packaging Market Size

Paper Packaging Market Summary
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Study Period 2018 - 2028
Base Year For Estimation 2022
CAGR 4.68 %
Fastest Growing Market Asia Pacific
Largest Market Asia Pacific
Market Concentration Medium

Major Players

Paper Packaging Market Major Players

*Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order
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Paper Packaging Market Analysis

The paper packaging market was valued at USD 360.74 billion in the previous year and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 4.68% during the forecast period to become USD 478.68 billion by the next five years.

  • Paper packaging is a versatile and cost-efficient method to protect, preserve, and transport a wide range of products. In addition, it can be customized to meet the customers' or product-specific needs. The attributes like lightweight, biodegradability, and recyclability are the advantages of paper packaging that make it an essential component for packaging.
  • Consumers worldwide are becoming more conscious of the environmental hazards of packaging and are moving their purchasing habits to more environmentally friendly options. Consumers, the government, and the media pressure manufacturers to make their products, packaging, and processes more environmentally friendly. People are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly packaging. The paperboard packaging industry is expected to grow due to these trends.
  • The expansion of e-commerce sales and the rising demand for folded carton packaging are driving the market. However, the availability of high-performance substitutes will likely restrain the market's growth. Paperboard packaging is one of the most popular eco-friendly packaging options. Compared to bulkier packaging solutions, this packaging format can be created in various sizes with a small footprint, making it suitable for use in almost all end-user sectors.
  • The major challenge faced by the paper packaging market is the need for paper to package very heavy materials, resulting in the industry being overpowered by the polymers and metal packaging industries. Furthermore, deforestation to acquire raw materials and release dioxins during paper production cause environmental concerns. These factors, in turn, are hindering the growth of the paper packaging market.
  • The packaging industry witnessed some major issues due to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the effects of the nationwide lockdown, companies moving to source away from China, and reconsidering materials used in packaging. Although the supply side of paper packaging witnessed a significant impact, a drastic increase in the end-user demand in some applications significantly expanded the scope of paper packaging.
  • According to Packaging Gateway, 5.6 million people left Ukraine since the conflict started on May 3, 2022. Over 300 significant Western corporations left the country due to the conflict, and numerous production and packaging facilities in Russia and Ukraine were shut down. Some businesses initially hesitated to halt, reduce, or shut down operations as they were still determining when it would finish. Early in April, two more companies operating in Russia for over 30 years, Finnish food packaging provider Huhtamäkiand Irish paper packaging company Smurfit Kappa, joined the expanding list of enterprises leaving the country.

Paper Packaging Market Trends

Food and Beverage Expected to Hold Significant Market Share

  • Paper and paperboard are among the most common materials for packaging food. Paper is an eco-friendly option in packaging, making it an ideal choice for food. It is predominantly used for packaging in direct contact with food and transporting and storing primary packages. Also, paper and paperboard are used in making microwave popcorn bags, baking paper, and fast-food containers. All this is expected to promote growth for paper packaging worldwide. The market growth in paper packaging is anticipated to be driven by high consumer awareness of packaged food, particularly packaged food delivery.
  • In addition, paper is one of the readily available, inexpensive resources. It is used extensively in the packaging of the food and beverage sector and the creation of papers. These materials can be recycled to create excellent molded products for packaging applications and other beverage-containing contact items like cups, pouches, and liquid cartons. The pandemic highlighted important health and wellness realities and the significance of consumers' dietary and lifestyle decisions. According to Mintel's Global Covid-19 tracker, consumers value eating and drinking healthily the most.
  • Most consumers lead on-the-go lifestyles. As a result, they are continuously seeking simpler foods to pick up, handle, eat, or carry. Brands are working harder to make food packaging portable to address this need. Packaging manufacturers depend on paper packaging for food products because it is extremely lightweight and easy to carry. Moreover, food packaging became more environmentally friendly in recent years. Big firms abandoned single-use plastics in favor of biodegradable, recyclable, or reusable packaging due to the desire for eco-friendly solutions.
  • Further, the growth of the food industry, which in turn is driving demand for folding cartons, corrugated boxes, and liquid paperboard boxes, is propelled by the increased need for ready-to-eat, frozen, and packaged goods. For instance, according to US Census Bureau, Retail food and beverage store sales in the United States reached an annual value of approximately USD 947 billion in 2022, a steady increase from the previous year and forward increasing the amount recorded from the last 5 years, thus increasing sales of food and beverage impact the growth of the paper packaging market.
  • Moreover, the quick shifts in beverage packaging patterns nationwide are one of the main drivers of industry expansion. The use of innovative packaging solutions grew significantly. Creating new active systems that can interact with the product or its surroundings, customer acceptability, food security, and enhancing the preservation of various beverages are the primary areas of recent developments in beverage packaging.
Paper Packaging Market - Retail Food and Beverage Annual Store Sales, in USD Billion, United States, 2017- 2022

Asia-Pacific Expected To Include Significant Market Share

  • The Asia-Pacific is expected to include significant growth. The market is expanding due to the increasing number of production facilities throughout the area, rising consumerism, and the transit packaging industry in the APAC region. The region is expected to expand the fastest due to the rising demand for paper pulp in developing nations like China and India. In China, the transportation packaging market is growing along with consumption, fueling a rapidly rising demand for paper packaging.
  • The growing urban population, evolving e-commerce package industry, dropping pulp prices, and improving population awareness about environmentally friendly packaging are expected to propel China's paper packaging market. Furthermore, the industry's key trends and developments are increased folding boxboard consumption, increased containerboard capacity, and technological breakthroughs.
  • Moreover, the demand for paper pulp is increasing in developing countries like China, the fastest-growing paper per capita user. The increase in the paper packaging sector in China is further governed by the booming retail and e-commerce industry and a boost in demand for environmentally friendly packaging products in the region. Furthermore, significant growth in online shopping platforms and online shoppers, changing consumer attitudes regarding sustainable packaging, and implementing favorable government policies increased the demand for paper and paperboard packaging products.
  • Since India's food and beverage, cosmetics, and other industries are rising faster, this industry is rapidly expanding. Furthermore, several government measures to limit plastic waste influence the market's growth. As a result, rising consumer awareness and the rise of India's organized food sector are driving market growth.
  • Moreover, India's paper and paperboard packaging growth is further driven by continued demand for quality FMCG products, pharmaceuticals, textiles, organized retail, booming e-commerce, and other segments. Additionally, Fruit pulp, juices, other concentrates, sauces, and ketchup bottles are driving the growing demand for paper and paperboard packaging in India. The industry in India went up the sustainability curve and became far more technologically advanced.
  • Japan significantly uses paper-based products in various industries, including newspapers, packaging, printing and communication, sanitary products, and other miscellaneous uses. There is a recent movement in the packaging sector to utilize paper because of consumer awareness about sustainable packaging, worries about deforestation, and raw material availability, among other factors.
  • Companies are forced to adapt to environmentally friendly packaging due to this aspect. Nestle, a Japanese company, is looking into new packaging options for various brands and goods. It is also aggressively researching materials to further lessen its environmental impact, as it sells approximately 4 million products daily.
Paper Packaging Market - Growth Rate by Region

Paper Packaging Industry Overview

The paper packaging market is fragmented. It is a highly competitive market with several players like International Paper, Mondi, Smurfit Kappa, and more in the market. There is no dominant player present in the market. The companies keep innovating and entering into strategic partnerships to retain their market share.

  • December 2022 - WestRock Company announced that it had successfully acquired Grupo Gondi's remaining interest for USD 970 million plus debt assumption. The Grupo Gondi acquisition includes four paper mills, nine corrugated packaging facilities, and six high graphic facilities throughout Mexico. These facilities produce sustainable packaging for a variety of regional end markets. The company's dominant position in the expanding corrugated packaging, consumer goods, paperboard, and containerboard markets in Latin America will be strengthened by this acquisition.
  • July 2022 - Mondi successfully developed and introduced a new recyclable paper packaging for a premium Italian pasta brand in collaboration with FioriniInternational, a primary converter and packaging company with headquarters in Italy. The brand and product-related information may be effectively communicated with the help of the new pasta bag, which also includes excellent runnability on filling equipment.

Paper Packaging Market Leaders

  1. Westrock Inc.

  2. International Paper Company

  3. Mondi Group

  4. Smurfit Kappa Group

  5. DS Smith PLC

*Disclaimer: Major Players sorted in no particular order

Paper Packaging Market Concentration

Paper Packaging Market News

  • August 2022 - Nestle Ice Cream Uses Paper Pack, Online Wine Merchant Launches Paper Bottle; Paper Manufacturer creates translucent barrier paper. Nestlé Hong Kong announced that its Kit Kat stick ice cream packaging is moving from plastic to paper, a first for the Innovation Zone. The packaging comprises 100% pure pulp, certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Further, British online wine merchant Laithwaites announced that it launched its first wine offering in a paper-based bottle. The bottle is made of 94% recycled board with a recyclable plastic pouch.
  • July 2022 - Sonoco announced that the company was expanding post-consumer recovery and recycling options for paper cups in mixed paper bales for use as raw materials at its Hartsville, South Carolina, paperboard facility to create new paperboard. According to prior verification, rigid paper cans in mixed-paper bales from home Material Recovery Facilities are accepted at all of Sonoco's paper mills in the United States. The Hartsville mill will now take paper cups with this most recent declaration.

Paper Packaging Market Report - Table of Contents

  1. 1. INTRODUCTION

    1. 1.1 Study Assumptions and Market Definition

    2. 1.2 Scope of the Study

  2. 2. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

  3. 3. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

  4. 4. MARKET INSIGHT

    1. 4.1 Market Overview

    2. 4.2 Industry Supply Chain Analysis

    3. 4.3 Industry Attractiveness - Porter's Five Forces Analysis

      1. 4.3.1 Bargaining Power of Suppliers

      2. 4.3.2 Bargaining Power of Consumers

      3. 4.3.3 Threat of New Entrants

      4. 4.3.4 Threat of Substitute Products

      5. 4.3.5 Intensity of Competitive Rivalry

  5. 5. MARKET DYNAMICS

    1. 5.1 Market Drivers

      1. 5.1.1 Development of Barrier-coated Paperboard Products

      2. 5.1.2 Growing Consumer Awareness on Paper Packaging

    2. 5.2 Market Restraints

      1. 5.2.1 Effects of Deforestation on Paper Packaging

      2. 5.2.2 Increasing Operational Costs

  6. 6. GLOBAL RECOVERED PAPER PRODUCTION STATISTICS

    1. 6.1 Recovered Paper, Production Quantity

    2. 6.2 Recovered Paper, Import Value, and Import Quantity

    3. 6.3 Recovered Paper, Export Value, and Export Quantity

    4. 6.4 Recovered Paper Production, by Leading Countries

  7. 7. CARTONBOARD EXIM SCENARIO

    1. 7.1 Cartonboard Exports By Value & Volume (USD Million, Million Tonnes)

    2. 7.2 Cartonboard Import By Value & Volume (USD Million, Million Tonnes)

  8. 8. MARKET SEGMENTATION

    1. 8.1 By Grade

      1. 8.1.1 Carton board

        1. 8.1.1.1 Solid bleached sulphate (SBS)

        2. 8.1.1.2 Solid unbleached sulphate (SUS)

        3. 8.1.1.3 Folding boxboard (FBB)

        4. 8.1.1.4 Coated Recycled Board (CRB)

        5. 8.1.1.5 Uncoated recycled board (URB)

        6. 8.1.1.6 Other Grades

      2. 8.1.2 Containerboard

        1. 8.1.2.1 White-top Kraftliner

        2. 8.1.2.2 Other Kraftliners

        3. 8.1.2.3 White top Testliner

        4. 8.1.2.4 Other Testliners

        5. 8.1.2.5 Semi Chemical Fluting

        6. 8.1.2.6 Recycled Fluting

    2. 8.2 By Product

      1. 8.2.1 Folding Cartons

      2. 8.2.2 Corrugated Boxes

      3. 8.2.3 Other Types

    3. 8.3 By End User Industry

      1. 8.3.1 Food

      2. 8.3.2 Beverage

      3. 8.3.3 Healthcare

      4. 8.3.4 Personal Care

      5. 8.3.5 Household Care

      6. 8.3.6 Electrical Products

      7. 8.3.7 Other End User Industries

    4. 8.4 By Geography

      1. 8.4.1 North America

        1. 8.4.1.1 United States

        2. 8.4.1.2 Canada

      2. 8.4.2 Europe

        1. 8.4.2.1 Germany

        2. 8.4.2.2 United Kingdom

        3. 8.4.2.3 Italy

        4. 8.4.2.4 France

        5. 8.4.2.5 Rest of Europe

      3. 8.4.3 Asia-Pacific

        1. 8.4.3.1 China

        2. 8.4.3.2 Japan

        3. 8.4.3.3 India

        4. 8.4.3.4 Rest of Asia Pacific

      4. 8.4.4 Latin America

        1. 8.4.4.1 Brazil

        2. 8.4.4.2 Mexico

        3. 8.4.4.3 Rest of Latin America

      5. 8.4.5 Middle East and Africa

        1. 8.4.5.1 United Arab Emirates

        2. 8.4.5.2 Saudi Arabia

        3. 8.4.5.3 South Africa

        4. 8.4.5.4 Rest of Middle East and Africa

  9. 9. COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

    1. 9.1 Company Profiles

      1. 9.1.1 International Paper Company

      2. 9.1.2 Mondi Group

      3. 9.1.3 Smurfit Kappa Group

      4. 9.1.4 DS Smith PLC

      5. 9.1.5 Eastern Pak Limited

      6. 9.1.6 WestRock Company

      7. 9.1.7 Packaging Corporation of America

      8. 9.1.8 Cascades Inc.

      9. 9.1.9 Nippon Paper Industries Ltd.

      10. 9.1.10 Sonoco Products Company

    2. *List Not Exhaustive

  10. 10. INVESTMENT ANALYSIS

  11. 11. FUTURE OF THE MARKET

**Subject to Availability

Paper Packaging Industry Segmentation

Paper packaging is made from paperboard, cardboard, shipping bags, and paper bags made from recycled paper fiber and tree pulp. The Paper and Packaging Industry is segmented by Grade (Carton board (Solid bleached sulfate (SBS), Solid unbleached sulfate (SUS), folding boxboard (FBB), Coated Recycled Board (CRB), Uncoated recycled board (URB)), Containerboard (White-top kraft-liner, Other kraft-liners, White top test-liner, Other test-liners, Semi-chemical fluting, and Recycled fluting)), by Product type (folding cartons, corrugated boxes), by End-user industry (Food, Beverage, Healthcare, Personal care, Household care, Electrical products), and by Geography (North America (United States, Canada), Europe(Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, France, Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, India, Rest of Asia Pacific), Latin America( Brazil, Mexico, Rest of Latin America), and Middle East and Africa(United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Rest of the Middle East and Africa)). The market sizes and forecasts are in USD value for all the above segments.

By Grade
Carton board
Solid bleached sulphate (SBS)
Solid unbleached sulphate (SUS)
Folding boxboard (FBB)
Coated Recycled Board (CRB)
Uncoated recycled board (URB)
Other Grades
Containerboard
White-top Kraftliner
Other Kraftliners
White top Testliner
Other Testliners
Semi Chemical Fluting
Recycled Fluting
By Product
Folding Cartons
Corrugated Boxes
Other Types
By End User Industry
Food
Beverage
Healthcare
Personal Care
Household Care
Electrical Products
Other End User Industries
By Geography
North America
United States
Canada
Europe
Germany
United Kingdom
Italy
France
Rest of Europe
Asia-Pacific
China
Japan
India
Rest of Asia Pacific
Latin America
Brazil
Mexico
Rest of Latin America
Middle East and Africa
United Arab Emirates
Saudi Arabia
South Africa
Rest of Middle East and Africa

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Paper Packaging Market Research FAQs

The Paper Packaging Market is projected to register a CAGR of 4.68% during the forecast period (2023-2028).

Westrock Inc., International Paper Company, Mondi Group, Smurfit Kappa Group and DS Smith PLC are the major companies operating in the Paper Packaging Market.

Asia Pacific is estimated to grow at the highest CAGR over the forecast period (2023-2028).

In 2023, the Asia Pacific accounts for the largest market share in the Paper Packaging Market.

Paper Packaging Industry Report

Statistics for the 2023 Paper Packaging market share, size and revenue growth rate, created by Mordor Intelligence™ Industry Reports. Paper Packaging analysis includes a market forecast outlook to for 2023 to 2028 and historical overview. Get a sample of this industry analysis as a free report PDF download.

Paper Packaging Market Report Snapshots

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