Operations are expected to start in 2019 and will serve a growing demand from food and beverage multi-national companies.
Megatrend urbanization
The flexible packaging market in India is expected to show double-digit growth in the mid-term, driven by megatrend urbanization and expansion of the retail sector.
Anurag More, Rajesh Nath, MD, VDMA India (part of the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association) said the packaging industry in India, is worth $17bn and constitutes around 4% of the world’s packaging industry.
“Over the last five years, the industry has seen an annual growth of 15% and the development of packaging machinery is on an upward trend. Both primary and secondary packaging have tremendously grown over the past few years. The Indian packaging industry is expected to become the fourth-largest packaging market in the world,” he said.
More than 80% of the total packaging in India constitutes rigid packaging. The remaining 20% comprises flexible packaging. There are about 600-700 packaging machinery manufacturers, 95% are in the small and medium sectors.
More than 60% of Indian imports are processing equipment for foodstuffs such as confectionery, bakery, beverages and fruit and vegetables.
Stefan Grote, executive VP, Food, Constantia Flexibles, said major FMCGs are demanding the highest level of sustainability for their packaging material and they will have to comply with the upcoming Indian Plastic Waste Management (PWM) regulations that promote only fully recyclable flexible packaging.
High barrier laminates
Constantia Flexibles already broke ground last year on a greenfield site close to production at Parikh which will become home to a polyethylene blown film extruder, Flexo printing press and laminators to produce high barrier laminates that can be fully recycled. It already has a label producer in the US and flexible packaging and folding carton producer in Mexico.
Parikh Packaging has been part of Constantia Flexibles since 2013 and owns a production unit in Ahmedabad, including rotogravure printing machines, PE extruders, lamination technologies and pouch making.
According to Euromonitor, India will become the third-biggest market for packaged food in 2020, after China and the US.
It claims the food packaging industry is India’s fifth-largest sector worth nearly $40bn. Due to rising incomes, urban lifestyle changes and modern retail trade, the food packaging market will expand distinctly.
As urban regions account for more than 80% of the demand for packaged food, there is a huge growth potential in the semi-urban and rural regions. By 2020, it is expected to reach over $65bn.