The global market for oxygen scavenger is projected to have a CAGR of around 4.6% during the forecast period. Oxygen scavenger aids in extending shelf life and product safety by preventing oxidation. They are added to food packaging to limit the level of oxygen to preserve the freshness, flavours, and stability of packaged products. The rising demand for fresh and quality packaged food is the major factor augmenting the growth of the market. The growing concern over the reduction of food wastage creates the demand for oxygen scavenger to store them for a longer period of time. According to the United States, Environmental Protection Agency wasted food costs the commercial food service industry roughly $100 billion annually. Furthermore, according to the GRACE Communications Foundation statistics, US restaurants generate an estimated 22 to 33 billion pounds of food waste each year, and approximately 4 to 10% of food purchased by restaurants is wasted before reaching the consumer. 

Due to the rising demand for quality foods, there are new product innovations in the market and more and more manufacturers are inclined towards the development of less toxic scavengers with an increasing range of applications. Moreover, the accidental ingestion of the sachet (a permeable used to pack oxygen scavengers) by consumers and potential spill/leak of the sachet contents into food is the major constrain associated oxygen scavenger. The safety concerns related to the handling of oxygen scavengers are also a restraining factor in the market growth. Besides, the new products innovations and rising demands from emerging economies can create lucrative opportunities in the global oxygen scavenger market.

COVID-19 Impact on Oxygen Scavenger Market: The oxygen scavenger market is negatively affected by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic since December 2019. The key industry application of oxygen scavenger includes food-packaging, pharmaceutical, industrial/metal and others that rely on the region such as North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. The outbreak of COVID-19 in the major economies of these regions such as India, Japan, Germany, France, and China have negative market growth. To maintain the social distancing norms, transportation and other facilities were stopped. Additionally, the food and packaging industry was also disrupted due to poor raw materials supply, labour shortage, and halt in production units. The markets for perishables such as vegetables, fruits, dairy products, and processed food are likely to be affected more than those for cereals and prepared foods. The perishables foods create the demand for oxygen scavengers in order to protect them from the outside environment. The market will witness “W” shape recovery in near future owing to the restart of key industries in major economies.  

Segmental Outlook  

The global oxygen scavenger market is segmented based on type, and end-user. On the basis of type, the market is bifurcated into metallic, and non-metallic. The non-metallic segment is anticipated to grow at significant CAGR during the forecast period owing to their high use in food and packaging industries and their easy to handle and fast reaction properties. Based on end-user, the market is categorized into food packaging, pharmaceuticals, industrial/metal, chemicals, others (microbiology).

Global Oxygen Scavenger Market Share by End-User, 2020 (%)

The Food Packaging Segment Holds the largest Share in Oxygen Scavenger Market.  

Based on end-user, the food packaging segment dominated the market in 2020, and it is anticipated to further hold a significant market share during the forecast period. The use of metallic and non-metallic oxygen scavenger in various industries such as food packaging is increasing due to their fast reactive properties. The use of oxygen scavenger in many applications creates demands for these, which, in turn, further drives the market growth. With the support of an oxygen scavenger, the shelf life of the food products can be extended for many days by lowering the level of oxygen inside the packaging to prevent them from the microorganism. Moreover, the pharmaceutical segment is the fastest-growing segment during the forecast period. The use of oxygen scavengers to protect the drugs by reducing oxidation, and increasing shelf life for cost optimization of drugs creates the demand for these products in the pharmaceutical industry. 

Regional Outlook 

Geographically, the global oxygen scavenger market is classified into four major regions including North America (the US and Canada), Europe (UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Russia, and Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (India, China, Japan, South Korea, ASEAN and Rest of Asia-Pacific), and Rest of the World (Latin America and the Middle East and Africa (MEA)). Among these, Asia-Pacific projected to witness the highest growth during the forecast period. The increasing demand for packaged foods due to the rising standard of living of the population is expected to boost the market growth in the region. The major economies of the region such as China, Japan, and India are also contributing towards the growth of the market by investing high in new products developments.

Global Oxygen Scavenger Market Growth, by Region 2021-2027

North America is projected to Dominate the Oxygen scavenger Market. 

Geographically, North America dominated the oxygen scavenger market and is projected to maintain its dominance with a significant CAGR during the forecast period. North America is the largest consumer of packaged food and pharmaceutical products. The growing concern regarding the wastage of food and adoption of new food packaging technologies are the major factors propelling the growth of the market. The presence of major market players and the initiatives taken by them to produce new products and technologies to curb the wastage of food is expected to drive the oxygen scavenger market growth during the forecast period. Apart from this, the higher consumer needs/behaviours, increasing disposable income and change in eating habits has a positive impact on the regional market development.

Market Players Outlook

The key players in the oxygen scavenger market contributing significantly by providing different types of products and increasing their geographical presence across the globe. The key players of the market are BASF SE, Accepta Ltd., Arkema Group, Ecolab Inc., Clariant International Ltd., Innospec Inc., Kemira Oyj, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company, Inc., among others. To remain competitive in the market and to generate major revenue, these market players adopt different marketing strategies such as mergers and acquisitions, R&D, product launches, partnership collaboration, and geographical expansions so on. For instance, in June 2018, Entegris, Inc. a leader in speciality chemicals and advanced materials solutions had acquired the SAES Pure Gas business (based in San Luis Obispo, California), from SAES Getters S.p. A.  Under this agreement, Entegris, Inc. had purchased the shares and assets which comprise the SAES Pure Gas business for approximately $355 million.

The Report Covers

• Market value data analysis of 2020 and forecast to 2027.
• Annualized market revenues ($ million) for each market segment.
• Country-wise analysis of major geographical regions.
• Key companies operating in the global oxygen scavenger market. Based on the availability of data, information related to pipeline products, and relevant news is also available in the report.
• Analysis of business strategies by identifying the key market segments positioned for strong growth in the future.
• Analysis of market-entry and market expansion strategies.
• Competitive strategies by identifying ‘who-stands-where’ in the market.