Market Trends of Proteases Industry
Rising Application of Proteases in Various Industries
Proteases are enzymes that play a significant role in various industries, making up 60% of the enzyme market. They are used in the production of detergent, leather, food, pharmaceuticals, paper, and pulp, as well as in the recovery of silver from photographic films and bioremediation procedures. Manufacturing daily essentials, such as textiles, paper, feed, food, medications, and chemicals, generates a substantial amount of waste, which is harmful to the environment and human health. Thus, the use of proteases has become crucial in increasing processing efficiency while reducing waste production and preserving natural resources. As a result, companies worldwide are searching for alternative technologies or mergers and acquisitions to meet the annual demand while consuming fewer natural resources.
For instance, in November 2022, Novozymes and LinusBio collaborated to test new, non-invasive technology in a clinical trial to assess exposure to harmful compounds. The project will leverage LinusBio's environmental biodynamics platform to map out harmful compound exposure during a clinical trial of probiotics sponsored by Novozymes' human health unit. The clinical trial will assess exposure to heavy metals, such as lead, and a broad range of environmental pollutants and is part of a larger clinical program from Novozymes OneHealth. Apart from environmental benefits, protease enzymes are widely used in the food and beverage industry to enhance food proteins' flavor, nutritional value, solubility, and digestibility. They are utilized in various applications such as brewing, coagulation of milk, and the meat industry, where proteases are used to tenderize meat products by breaking down the microfibre in the meat structure. Alkaline proteases prepare protein hydrolysates of high nutritional value with a well-defined peptide profile.
Protease enzymes have diverse applications in numerous industries. The market is expected to grow significantly in the upcoming years due to its vital role in reducing waste production, improving processing efficiency, and preserving natural resources.
Asia-Pacific is the Fastest-growing Market
India, China, and South Korea are some of the fastest-growing markets for processed foods globally, making the Asia-Pacific region the most productive market for protease enzymes by application. In India, the food processing industry is one of the largest in the world, and the country presents enormous growth potential for proteases. In China, rapid urbanization and income growth create a demand for high-value products, diversifying the Chinese diet and increasing the demand for protease enzymes.
South Korea has a developing processed food industry, where consumers are more inclined toward frozen processed foods and frozen meat products, especially pork meat with high-fat content. It holds the fifteenth largest market share in processed food globally. The South Korean food industry also holds greater potential for wide applications of food additives like proteases.
The expanding organized retail chains in developing regions further augment the demand for processed meat products, benefiting meat tenderizing agents, including protease. In the bakery industry, protease is used to reduce the gluten of flour, improve the plasticity of gluten, increase dough volume, improve dough toughness, and shorten dough forming time. The heightened demand for high-quality, long-shelf-life, healthy bakery products, including bread, cakes, biscuits, and others, is expected to fuel the growth of the protease enzyme segment.
In addition to food and bakery products, protease enzymes are widely used in detergents and pharmaceuticals. The Asia-Pacific region also presents untapped growth potential for protease enzymes in these industries. Overall, the Asia-Pacific region is an important market for protease enzymes and is expected to witness significant growth in the coming years.
