Originally published August, 2007

Executive Summary

Most of our food comes from Nature, and in the future, more of its packaging is likely to be biobased, as well. Currently, biodegradable packaging is a niche market, about one to two percent
of the food packaging segment, which accounts for about 40 percent of the $460 billion global
packaging industry. Currently, only a few companies are producing biodegradable packaging
materials on a large enough scale to be commercially successful. According to one estimate,
biodegradable packaging will see 20 percent annual growth between 2005 and 2010. Even so, it
will continue to be only a small fraction of the overall food packaging market.

The primary factors driving development of the biodegradable packaging market include the
increase in crude oil prices, which has narrowed the price differential; consumer demand; the
proliferation of convenience packaging; development of new applications for bioplastics;
increased economic viability as production ramps up and unit costs decrease, and development of the composting infrastructure for optimal disposal of bioplastic products.

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