Contract Packaging Market Size, Share, Growth, and Industry Analysis, By Type (Flexible Packaging, Rigid Packaging, Bottle and Jar Packaging, Blister Packs, Pouches), By Application (Commercial Aviation, Military Aviation, Business Jets) and Regional Insights and Forecast to 2034

•   
•   
  

  Request a Free sample to learn more about this report

    

CONTRACT PACKAGING MARKET OVERVIEW

The Global Contract Packaging Market Size was USD 17.23 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 29.04 billion in 2034, exhibiting a CAGR of 5.7% during the forecast period.

Contract Packaging, sometimes known as co-packing, is the process that outsources the packaging activities to a third-party firm. The vast majority of these co-packers provide a full line of services, including design of package material, procurement of materials, assembly, labeling, and often even supply chain management, including warehousing and distribution. To benefit the co-packers co-packaging or Contract Packaging is used by the companies and this enables the companies to benefit due to the expertise in the field of the co-packing companies, use of unique equipments and economies of the scale which reduce the operational cost, increase the efficiency as well as focus of the companies on their core competencies like development of the product and marketing of the product as well. This model is especially useful to those companies that experience a high or a low volume of sales, those that have a unique technology needed to pack their products, or those that have a high potential for cost savings through capital investment reduction.

The Contract Packaging Market has been growing immensely all over the world, which is due to the growing trend of outsourcing in numerous different industries, such as the food and beverage industry, pharmaceutical industry, cosmetic industry, and consumer goods. The North American region already possesses a considerable Contract Packaging Market Share, with Asia-Pacific being another dominant market that is developing rapidly. Some of the major drivers behind this development are the growth of e-commerce, whereby specialized and in many cases customized packaging solutions are required, as well as a growing emphasis on sustainable and eco-friendly packaging materials. The benefits include increasing awareness of sustainable packaging and the usage of eco-friendly packaging materials. Contract packagers now play an increasingly important role within the supply chain for businesses in search of flexible and cost-effective solutions that are compliant.

COVID-19 IMPACT

The CONTRACT PACKAGING Industry Had a Negative Effect Due to Factory Closures During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The global COVID-19 pandemic has been unprecedented and staggering, with the market experiencing lower-than-anticipated demand across all regions compared to pre-pandemic levels. The sudden growth reflected by the rise in CAGR is attributable to the market’s growth and demand returning to pre-pandemic levels.

The COVID-19 pandemic entailed the considerable transformation of the Contract Packaging Market, both by presenting the enormous challenges and providing new opportunities. The changes in consumer behavior and the blanket lockdowns across the world caused a demand surge that these industries had never seen before regarding most basic necessities such as food, drinks, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products. This boom, especially in e-commerce, compelled the brands to swiftly redesign packaging strategies, and many of them are now turning to co-packers because they need an adaptable approach to packaging and the capacity to ramp up for quality production levels. However, massive supply chain disruption, labour shortage, and movement of goods to different states at inflated costs were also impacts of the pandemic, and co-packing companies were forced to innovate and improve their supply chain resilience. This, in turn, led to an increased rate of automation and digitalization of the Contract Packaging industry in a bid to reduce reliance on the human workforce and enhance efficiency, which has fundamentally changed the dynamics of the marketplace in the long run.

LATEST TRENDS

Automation and Robotics to Drive Market Growth

The major trend characterizing the industry of Contract Packaging is the widespread use of automation and robotics. Co-packers are putting up more and more advanced equipment, such as robotic arms and pick-and-place actions, automated palletizers, and systems of joining packages. This change is prompted by the desire to make operations more efficient, faster, cheaper in terms of labor demands, and more accurate and consistent in packaging. Automation also enables the contract packagers to complete repetitive or dangerous work, enhancing protection in the workplace, and also offers the flexibility to rapidly adapt to changes in product size, shape, and packaging styles, which is important in a market where client needs vary and demand is typified by fluctuations.

•   
•   
  

  Request a Free sample to learn more about this report

    

CONTRACT PACKAGING MARKET SEGMENTATION

By Type

Based on Type, the global market can be categorized into Flexible Packaging, Rigid Packaging, Bottle and Jar Packaging, Blister Packs, Pouches.

• Flexible Packaging: Product innovations in this segment continue to develop towards sustainable and lightweight materials, such as mono-materials, bio-resins, etc., as they satisfy the increasing demands on the environment and reduce transport costs.

• Rigid Packaging: Contract packagers focused on rigid packaging are working on new solutions in terms of recycled content and lightweighting, improved barrier properties alongside ornamental blockade properties to encompass product shelf life and improve sustainability.

• Bottle and Jar Packaging: An accentuated trend under the shade of bottle and jars packaging is the replacement of glass by more durable, lighter containers, such as PET and HDPE, especially boosted by increasing e-commerce penetration and necessity of lower breakage rates and shipping expenses, yet accumulating focus on recycling.

• Blister Packs: The Blister packs market, especially that of pharmaceuticals, is one where patient-friendly designs, high security mechanisms such as serialization, and the introduction of smart capabilities to ensure increased adherence and traceability are the rationales underpinning this growth market.

• Pouches: The growth of pouches is notable, and the innovation of sustainability and the ease of convenience and portability are a big part of its growth, with contract packagers providing resealable, stand-up, and paper-based pouches toward an array of consumer preferences and e-commerce opportunities.

By Application

Based on the Application, the global market can be categorized into Consumer Goods, Pharmaceuticals, Food & Beverage, Cosmetics, Electronics, and Industrial Products.

• Consumer Goods: Contract Packaging is very important in the consumer goods sector because it allows the sector to keep up with changing trends fast, support a wide variety of products, and help the fast-moving e-commerce drive its offerings in ship-packaged, attractive, and frequently custom-packaged forms.

• Pharmaceuticals: Studies are stringent in the pharmaceutical industry, and Contract Packaging is often needed because of a high degree of regulatory mandate and necessitates specialized seriation, anti-counterfeit options, and cold chain solutions, as well as specialized packaging of a variety of formulations, as well as sterility needs.

• Food & Beverage: A large application is to the food & beverage industry, where the priorities of the contract packagers are food safety, extended shelf-life products, environmentally friendly packaging materials, and the ability to efficiently produce a wide volume of products to serve the wide-ranging ranging diverse, and changing needs of this industry.

• Cosmetics: The Cosmetics industry relies on Contract Packaging because of its high-value product aesthetic, branding, small lot production runs of the newly developed products, and, more recently, sustainable, refillable packaging options to appeal to eco-friendly consumers.

• Electronics: In the case of electronics, Contract Packaging plays an important role in the protection of products against static discharge and physical shock during the packing and transportation, and increasingly with the use of anti-static materials, custom inserts, and small/rugged device packaging that can be used in direct e-commerce fulfillment.

• Industrial Products: Industrial product Contract Packaging is aimed at durability, bulk packs, business-efficient handling of the packaging on the logistics aspect, and common where the majority of kits and assembly types of components or parts are offered, ensuring that products are secured and prepared to undergo industrial usage or distribution.

MARKET DYNAMICS

Market dynamics include driving and restraining factors, opportunities, and challenges, stating the market conditions.

Driving Factors

Growing Trend of Outsourcing Non-Core Operations to Boost the Market

The Growing Trend of Outsourcing Non-Core Operations is a major factor in the Contract Packaging Market Growth. The growing trend among companies in different industries is that packaging can be a very important activity, but it is not necessarily their core competency. Outsourcing such functions to know how contract packagers enables a business to save a lot of money in terms of operations, as the company does not have to invest capital in buying machines, and the outsourced firm saves too much on labour costs. This strategic move can help them be economical in their allocation and even concentrate more on their main competencies in areas like product development, marketing, and innovation, and in the long run, become more competitive, which will help create expansion in the market.

The Booming E-commerce Industry to expanding the Market

One of the major drivers of the growth of the Contract Packaging space is the thriving e-commerce base. Special built-in needs of online retailing are influencing the brands to find more specific packaging solutions: superior protection of the goods during shipping so that they could remain in the best condition, specific dimensions of their shipping requirements to save on shipment costs, and a superior unpacking experience of consumers to use the product right after reception. Contract packagers are ideally qualified to address this need by providing specialisation in customised e-commerce packing, kitting and bundling, and efficient fulfilment services that are essential to the fast and varied number of orders typical of online sales.

Restraining Factor

Stringent Regulatory Compliance Impedes Market Growth

The rising level of regulatory obligations and the magnitude of compliance are critical inhibiting elements of the Contract Packaging sector. Pharmaceuticals, food & beverage, cosmetics, and other global industries are affected by changing, and in many cases vastly different global regulations relating to product safety, labeling, component restrictions (materials), and product traceability (e.g., serialisation). The compliance with these various and highly changing rules requires high expenditure in the quality control mechanisms, special equipment and devices, intense testing, and ongoing training. This elevated pressure to comply may enhance the cost of operation to the co-packers, provide or form an obstacle to entry in the market, as well as the need to constantly keep pace with the new legal frameworks, which in turn slows the entire market growth.

Expansion in Sustainable and Smart Packaging Solutions for Product Opportunities in the Market

Opportunity

Rising concern about sustainability and smart packaging is a big opportunity that is going to lead to contract packagers offering more and cutting themselves apart. With a rise in environmental awareness and the tightening of regulations, every brand is very interested in adopting recyclable, biodegradable, or recycled content packaging materials. At the same time, the emergence of smart packaging, the inclusion of such technologies as QR codes, RFID, and sensors, provides a chance at improved product and authenticity verification as well as consumer communication and interaction.

Being an observer in such new spheres and focusing on them with investments, co-packers can offer essential value-added services that address the changing market demand, build strong collaborative relations with clients, and become leaders in a future-oriented packaging environment.

Ensuring Consistent Quality and Traceability Could Be a Potential Challenge

Challenge

The potential disadvantage of brands that use Contract Packaging to a large extent is the consistency of product quality and end-to-end traceability in an outsider supply chain. Though co-packers will have the knowledge and productivity, loss of direct control over the packaging operation means concerns about ensuring the stringency of the appropriate quality standards, avoiding variations, and also instantaneous detection and tracing of products in case there is a recall or problem with quality.

To limit these risks, brands should turn to effective communication measures, strong quality contracts, frequent audits, and even the employment of the technologies of advanced traceability technologies to ensure they can guarantee trust to the consumer.

•   
•   
  Request a Free sample to learn more about this report

    

CONTRACT PACKAGING MARKET REGIONAL INSIGHTS

• North America

North America has very high percentages in terms of the share of the global Contract Packaging Market, which is spurred by the highly developed consumer goods, pharmaceutical, and food & beverage industries of North America. The United States Contract Packaging Market thrives on the high outsourcing levels, the high rate of development of the e-commerce sector, activating the need for particular packaging services, and strong regulatory environments forcing firms to resort to professional co-packers to outsource co-packing businesses to achieve compliance. Automation and the development of sustainable packaging solutions are highly loaded, and constant investment is made in modern technologies to increase efficiency and decrease the environmental load.

• Europe

The European Contract Packaging Market is an industrialized market with a great deal of industrial capacity as well as a marked emphasis on sustainability and innovation. Other huge growth factors here include the pharmaceutical industry, which, in addition to growing research and development expenditure, requires effective smart packaging solutions to provide traceability and patient safety. Increasing sales of e-commerce, and increased interest in customized products and adhering to environmental requirements also support the market. Nevertheless, strict government policies on regulations have been one of the main concerns of operational strategies of co-packers in the region.

• Asia

Asia Pacific is a hotbed of the Contract Packaging Market as the packaging market is growing insanely in this region, owing to the growing manufacturing practices, increasing disposable income of the people, and the exponentially growing online business in Asia-Pacific, especially in countries such as India and China. Demand in outsourced packaging services is being fueled by the rising inclination of people to buy packaged goods, as well as the desire of manufacturers to optimize costs. Other important opportunities that exist in the region include sustainable packaging and the technological improvements that would address the changing and varied demands of its large consumer base.

KEY INDUSTRY PLAYERS

Key Players Transforming the Contract Packaging Market Landscape through Innovation and Global Strategy

Through the innovation of strategies and market development, the market players in the field of enterprise are shaping the Contract Packaging Market. Certain of these can be seen as advancements in designs, Products of materials, and controls, besides the use of smarter technologies for the enhancement of functionality and operational flexibility. Managers are aware of their responsibility to spend money on the development of new products and processes and expand the scope of manufacturing. This market expansion also assists in diversifying the market growth prospects and attaining higher market demand for the product in numerous industries.

List Of Top Contract Packaging Companies

• Berlin Packaging (U.S.)
• Sharp Packaging Services (U.S.)
• Reed-Lane (U.S.)
• PCI Pharma Services (U.S.)
• Jones Packaging Inc. (Canada)
• Daito Group (Japan)
• McKesson Corporation (U.S.)
• UPS Supply Chain Solutions (U.S.)
• DHL Supply Chain (Germany)
• CCL Industries (Canada)

KEY INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT

October 2023: The acquisition of Berkshire Sterile Manufacturing by Sharp gave its entity a huge boost as far as pharmaceutical Contract Packaging is concerned. This strategic action further increased Sharp into even specialty and regulatory sterile injectable products that were more necessary to the pharmaceutical market. To complement this even further, Sharp also boosted its clinical services in the Netherlands, and this shows that Sharp gained continuous global interest in serving the complexity of the pharmaceutical industry.

REPORT COVERAGE

This report is based on historical analysis and forecast calculation that aims to help readers get a comprehensive understanding of the global Contract Packaging Market from multiple angles, which also provides sufficient support to readers’ strategy and decision-making. Also, this study comprises a comprehensive analysis of SWOT and provides insights for future developments within the market. It examines varied factors that contribute to the market's growth by discovering the dynamic categories and potential areas of innovation whose application may influence its trajectory in the upcoming years. This analysis encompasses both recent trends and historical turning points for consideration, providing a holistic understanding of the market’s competitors and identifying capable areas for growth.

This research report examines the segmentation of the market by using both quantitative and qualitative methods to provide a thorough analysis that also evaluates the influence of strategic and financial perspectives on the market. Additionally, the report's regional assessments consider the dominant supply and demand forces that impact market growth. The competitive landscape is detailed meticulously, including shares of significant market competitors. The report incorporates unconventional research techniques, methodologies, and key strategies tailored for the anticipated frame of time. Overall, it offers valuable and comprehensive insights into the market dynamics professionally and understandably.