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Biodegradable polymers constitute a loosely defined family of polymers. This
report includes only polymers that producers promote as fully biodegradable
and that meet international standards. In 2005, the two most important commercial
biodegradable polymers were polylactide (PLA) and starch-based polymers. However,
it must be noted that certain grades of PLA are not truly biodegradable and
are being used in conventional applications. Other polymers that certainly
meet the definition of biodegradable include polyesters such as poly(epsilon-caprolactone),
also known as PCL or polycaprolactone, a biodegradable polymer used primarily
in starch-based compositions.
Nearly all biodegradable polymers (except starch-based polymers and polycaprolactone)
are products that are in the early stages of market development. Producers
have developed second-generation products that demonstrate good biodegradability
characteristics and they are in various stages of commercializing these products.
In 2005, total demand for biodegradable polymers in North America, Western
Europe and Asia reached 85 thousand metric tons, valued at approximately $280
million. Total consumption of biodegradable polymers in these three regions
will increase to over 230 thousand metric tons in 2010, representing an average
annual growth rate of 22% over the five-year period from 2005 to 2010. This
growth projection assumes that 225 thousand metric tons per year of new production
capacity is brought on stream prior to 2010, allowing producers to gain market
share through price reductions that began earlier in the decade.
The following graph shows supply/demand for biodegradable polymers in the
major regions:
Legislation in Western Europe, and to a lesser extent in the United States
and Asia, has helped to spur demand. Future legislation will depend not only
on the environmental awareness of politicians but also on their perceptions
of how these polymers fit into plastic recycling strategies. Legislation in
Taiwan and other Asian countries will drive demand in that region. This report
includes extensive coverage of environmental legislation aspects of the biodegradable
polymers market.
In 2005, Western Europe was the dominant market for biodegradable polymers,
accounting for over half of world consumption; North America accounted for
about 20% and Asia accounted for over 25%. However, a large portion (about
half) of the world’s 2005 production capacity was located in the United
States as a result of Cargill Dow’s (now known as NatureWorks LLC) 2002
investment in Blair, Nebraska. In 2005, there was little production in Asia
with a large share of the product consumed there being imported from the United
States.
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