(Food-Beverage-News.Com, May 09, 2020 ) The industrial margarine market is estimated at USD 2.25 billion in 2017 and is projected to reach a value of USD 2.66 billion by 2022, at a CAGR of 3.5% from 2017 to 2022. The market is segmented on the basis of application, type, source, form, and region. The types of industrial margarine include spreadable, all purpose, and butter blend. On the basis of application, the market is segmented into bakery; spreads, sauces, and toppings; confectionery, convenience food, and others (desserts & snacks). The market has also been segmented on the basis of form into hard and soft. The market has been segmented on the basis of source into plant and animal. On the basis of key regions, the industrial margarine market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Rest of the World (RoW).
The industrial margarine market is driven by factors such as changing consumer preferences toward low-calorie and low-fat alternatives for butter and oil, which subsequently drives the industrial margarine market.
Based on source, margarine sourced from plants is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Plants such as safflower, corn, cottonseed, soybean, sunflower, coconut oil, palm oil, rapeseed oil, and canola oil, among others are used for manufacturing margarine. In Asian countries such as India, due to the large vegetarian population, Indian margarine manufacturers prefer processing it from plants. Companies such as Vandemoortele (Belgium), Bunge (US), and Fuji Oil (Japan) produce margarine from plant sources.
The Asia Pacific region is expected to be the fastest-growing market for industrial margarine from 2017 to 2022. Key markets in the Asia Pacific region include China, India, Japan, and Australia. The major driving factors for industrial margarine is its vast areas of agriculture and the production of plants for palm oil and sunflower oil as they are the primarily used as raw materials for producing margarine.
The key market players adopted various growth strategies such as acquisitions, expansions, and joint ventures in order to cater to the increasing demand for industrial margarine. The companies in this market focus on increasing their research & development expenditure to expand their manufacturing capacities and innovate new margarine products.
The core strengths of the key players in this market are acquisitions and expansions, which help enhance their presence in the industrial margarine market. The companies are adopting new technologies to create nutrient fortified industrial margarine to match the requirements of food companies. Companies such as Vandemoortele (Belgium), Bunge (US), Puratos (Belgium), and EFCO Group (Russia) are expanding their production facilities as well as their R&D divisions for developing nutrient fortified industrial margarine. These companies also focus on offering a diverse range of industrial margarine for the bakery and confectionery industries.
Bunge (US) has been one of the major players in the global industrial margarine market. It has its customer base across the Asia Pacific, African, Middle Eastern, European, Caribbean, Central American, North American, and South American regions. The company has been focusing on inorganic growth strategies such as joint ventures; for instance, in July 2016, Bunge entered into a joint venture with Wilmar International Limited (Singapore) to increase its operations and logistics in the Asian region.
Puratos (Belgium) strengthened its position in the industrial margarine market mainly through acquisitions. In November 2017, Puratos acquired Pennant Ingredients (US); this acquisition would help Puratos increase its business in the foodservice industry in North America. In February 2017, the company acquired Diamant (Austria) to expand its business in Austria and strengthen its position in Central & Eastern Europe.
