Metal Biocides Market Expected to Reach $5.87 Billion by 2031—Allied Market Research

According to a new report published by Allied Market Research, titled, “Metal Biocides Market," The metal biocides market was valued at $3.67 billion in 2021, and is estimated to reach $5.87 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 4.8% from 2022 to 2031.

Metal biocides are substances that are used as antibacterial agents to inhibit the growth or activity of harmful pathogens. Metals such as copper (Cu), magnesium (Mg), mercury (Hg), tellurium (Te), arsenic (As) and gold (Au) are widely used as metal biocides in various end-use sectors including paints & coatings, textiles, wood preservation, food & beverages, water treatment, and others.

Increase in investments in building infrastructure in countries such as the U.S., China, Japan, Mexico, and India, have led the building & construction sector to in paints & coatings. Furthermore, it can be used to address the problems in exterior coatings where environmental exposure causes development of airborne algae and fungi. In addition, increase in awareness about cleanliness and hygiene has surged the demand for personal care products. According to a report published by the Indian Ministry of Economy and Industry, the personal care and cosmetics industry is one of the fastest-growing consumer products sectors and is estimated to be worth around $10.5 billion by the end of 2021. Biocides such as triacetin, undecylenic, resorcinol, and others are often found in mouthwashes, toothpastes, shaving gels, and deodorants. Furthermore, metal biocides are used in various cosmetic formulations to decontaminate skin of individuals that could harbor bacteria, algae, insects, and others. This is anticipated to increase the demand for metal biocide formulations in the growing personal care and hygiene industry; thus fueling the growth of the metal biocides market.

However, easy availability of substitutes may hamper the growth of the metal biocides market during the forecast period. On the contrary, rise in incidence of lifestyle diseases has led the healthcare sector to witness significant growth. For instance, according to a report published by National Investment Promotion & Facilitation Agency, the Indian healthcare sector is expected to reach $372 billion by 2022 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 39%. Also, the emergence of deadly contagious diseases such as COVID-19, HIV or AIDS, tuberculosis, and others, have surged the use of personal decontamination activities where metal biocides are used to control the growth of pathogenic microorganisms or to eliminate them from inanimate objects, surfaces or intact skin.  This is anticipated to increase the sales of metal biocides in the growing medical sector; thus creating lucrative opportunities for the market.

The metal biocides market is segmented on the basis of type, application, and region. By type, the market is segregated into copper, zinc, silver, and others. The silver segment dominated the global market in terms of revenue in 2021, with 46.15% of the total share. This is attributed to the fact that silver biocides are used in an ever increasing range of products, including water treatment, fibers, washing machines, dyes/paints & varnishes, polymers, medical applications, sinks & sanitary ceramics, and various consumer applications such as disinfectants, cosmetics, cleaning agents, baby bottles, and others. Rise in awareness about hygiene & cleanliness-related activities has led the customers to become linear toward using silver biocide-based products, owing to their antibacterial and disinfectant properties. This has surged the popularity of silver type metal biocides among various end-use sectors.

By application, the market is divided into paints & coatings, food & beverages, medical, textile, wood preservation and others. The paints & coatings segment dominated the global market in terms of revenue in 2021, with 35.83% of the total share. This is attributed to growing population coupled with rapid urbanization, which in turn has led the building & construction sector to witness a significant growth where metallic biocides are widely used to resist the growth of bacteria, fungi, algae, and others on the applied paints & coatings. For instance, according to a report published by the U.S. Census Bureau, the total construction spending during February 2022 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $1,704.4 billion, which is 11.2% above the February 2021 estimate of $1,533.3 billion. This factor has fuelled the demand for metal biocides for paints & coatings applications.

Region wise, the metal biocides market is analyzed across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA. The Asia-Pacific metal biocides market size is projected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period, and accounted for a major metal biocides market share in 2021, owing to rise in building & construction, textile, and other sectors that have enhanced demand for metal biocides in the Asia-Pacific region.

China's paints & coatings manufacturing sector is increasing rapidly which has forced the metal biocides manufacturers to produce more efficient metal biocides used as disinfectants and food preservatives. Furthermore, the textile sector in India is witnessing a significant growth owing to increase in fashion consciousness among people where metal biocides such as organo-copper compounds, organo-tin compounds, and others, are used to look after textiles prone to harsh weathering conditions. For instance, according to a report published by Indian Brands Equity Foundation in May 2022, India's home textile exports grew at a healthy rate of 9% in 2021.

Key players operating in the global metal biocides market include Azelis, BASF SE, Dadia chemical Industries, Evonik Industries AG, KLK Oleo, Otto Chemie Pvt. Ltd., Pilot Chemical Corp, Samrat Industries, Siddharth Chemicals, and Troy Corporation.

COVID-19 analysis:

The novel coronavirus is an incomparable global pandemic that has spread to over 180 countries and caused huge losses of lives and the economy around the globe. The major end users of metallic biocides such as textile, paints & coatings, and other sectors have been negatively impacted due to the ongoing pandemic outbreak. The ongoing health crisis has increased the supply–demand gap, hampering the global metallic biocides supply chain. Moreover, several companies have either shut down or shrank their operations due to the risk of infections among the workforce where metallic biocides are widely used as preservatives and antibacterial agents. This has temporarily hampered the demand for the metallic biocides market amid the COVID-19 period. In addition, more than 100 countries have locked their international borders for transportation and non-essential trade activities, which, in turn, have has reduced the consumption of metallic biocides among several end end-use sectors. Furthermore, the temporary shutdown of construction and infrastructure activities amid the COVID-19 period has reduced the consumption of metallic biocides among the paints & coatings sector. For instance, according to a report published by a research journal   named as the Journal of Physics, the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the investment in the construction industry in India by 30%.

In 2020, metallic biocides prices were higher in Asia-Pacific region. The price rise was, due to continued regional demand trends and tight product availability. Firm downstream metallic biocides demand and stronger upstream costs are expected to sustain the price gain.

However, the metallic biocides market is expected to recover rapidly post COVID-19 situation, due to its increased dependency over healthcare & pharmaceutical, agriculture, and other sectors. For instance, according to an article published by Financial Express, the Indian pharmaceutical industry registered a growth of 15% in 2021, and is expected to grow at an average annual growth rate of 18.6% by 2025. This is expected to enhance the performance of the metallic biocides market post-COVID-19 scenario.

Key findings of the study

• By type, the Silver segment is estimated to display the highest growth rate, in terms of revenue, registering a CAGR of 4.8% from 2022 to 2031.
• By application, the paints & coatings application segment is estimated to display the highest growth rate, in terms of revenue, registering a CAGR of 5.0% from 2022 to 2031.
• Depending on end-use industry, the pharmaceutical industry segment exhibited the highest CAGR of 6.49%.
• By region, Asia-Pacific garnered the highest share of 38.1% in 2021, in terms of revenue, growing at a CAGR of 5.2%.