World enzyme demand is forecast to rise 6.4 percent per annum to $6.9 billion in 2017. Increasing per capita incomes in developing countries will help fuel strong gains in consumer-related industrial applications such as food and beverages, animal feed, and cleaning products.
Technological advances in DNA manipulation that result in lower DNA sequencing costs will continue to drive above average growth in research and biotechnology, as well as diagnostic enzyme demand, primarily in developed countries where new uses for DNA manipulation continue to be discovered. However, the enzyme industry will face challenges in the large biofuel market as rising public opposition to first generation biofuels and delays in the widespread commercialization of next generation biofuel technologies limit advances.
Through the forecast period, a key driver of expanded enzyme use will be the growing middle class population in countries such as China and India. Rising per capita incomes will support the growing use of enzymes in consumer goods, including detergents and food products, as consumers increasingly adopt western style diets and switch to higher performing (and higher cost) products that make greater use of enzymes. Rising meat consumption among the increasingly affluent middle class will lead to higher animal feed enzyme demand as farmers seek to maximize animal weight to satisfy strong demand. Additionally, growing manufacturing sectors in these countries will benefit a number of other industrial markets. Similar trends in Central and South America, Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East will lead to above average gains in these regions as well. In developed economies advances in industrial enzyme demand will be more moderate as slower population growth and more mature market applications limit opportunities for strong gains. However, niche opportunities may arise as governments require greater use of green and sustainable products.
Continued advances in biotechnology, particularly with respect to DNA manipulation and sequencing, will drive robust increases in specialty enzyme demand across all regions going forward, though the greatest gains will be in the developed countries of North America and Western Europe where much of the world's research and biotechnology infrastructure is already in place. Rapidly falling DNA sequencing costs will continue to drive enzyme demand in the diagnostics and research and biotechnology markets by facilitating the development of new applications such as genetic-based drug prescription or pesticide selection. Advances in DNA-based technologies will also benefit biocatalyst demand as enzyme producers work to design custom enzymes that optimize specialty chemical production processes.
The slowest gains will be for biofuel production enzymes. As countries such as the United States see stagnant demand for motor fuels and reconsider mandating the diversion of food grains into the transportation industry, the outlook for firstgeneration, grain-based biofuels will be weak. However, the long term promise of biofuel production from cellulosic biomass -- such as agricultural waste products -- will begin to emerge during the forecast period, although the market size is expected to remain small.
This upcoming Freedonia industry study, World Enzymes, is priced at $6300. It presents historical demand data for 2002, 2007 and 2012, plus forecasts for 2017 and 2022 by product, market, world region, and for 16 countries. The study also considers key market environment factors, evaluates company market share and profiles 30 global industry players.