The global food extrusion market, valued at USD 73.1 billion in 2021, is anticipated to reach to USD 99.7 billion by 2026, with a projected compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.4% during the forecast period. Innovative and flexibly designed processing and packaging systems are the prerequisites for manufacturers to keep pace with the trends in the food industry that may arise from operation cost and consumer spending. Advanced automated food processing equipment enables high-volume production of better-quality products with a longer shelf life.
Food Extrusion Market Trends:
The food extrusion market has been experiencing several notable trends, driven by evolving consumer preferences, technological advancements, and sustainability concerns. Here are some key trends:
- Health and Wellness: With a growing emphasis on health-conscious eating, consumers are seeking food products that offer nutritional benefits. Food extrusion technology allows for the production of snacks, cereals, and other food items fortified with vitamins, minerals, and functional ingredients.
- Plant-Based Alternatives: As the demand for plant-based foods continues to rise, food extrusion technology is being utilized to create a variety of meat and dairy alternatives. Extruded plant proteins can mimic the texture and taste of meat products, offering consumers more sustainable and ethical choices.
- Snack Innovation: The snack industry is witnessing a surge in innovative extruded snack products. Extrusion enables the creation of unique shapes, textures, and flavors, leading to a diverse range of snack options such as puffed snacks, extruded crisps, and coated snacks.
- Clean Label: Consumers are increasingly seeking foods with simple, recognizable ingredients. Food extrusion technology allows manufacturers to produce snacks and ready-to-eat products with minimal processing and clean labels, meeting the demand for transparency and natural ingredients.
- Customization and Personalization: Food extrusion equipment is becoming more versatile, allowing manufacturers to customize products according to consumer preferences. This trend is particularly evident in the personalized nutrition space, where extrusion technology is used to create personalized snack bars, breakfast cereals, and other functional foods.
- Sustainability: Sustainable manufacturing practices are gaining importance in the food industry. Food extrusion technology offers several sustainability benefits, including reduced waste, energy efficiency, and the ability to utilize alternative ingredients such as upcycled or byproduct materials.
Food Extrusion Market Opportunities: New product developments and launches of extruded product types
Over the past few years, the processed food industry has witnessed several activities—the emergence of new players, the expansion of the snack portfolio through continuous product innovation, aggressive marketing campaigns to establish a supplier-consumer relationship, and a shift in consumption patterns with the increasing demand for convenience foods. With the increase in disposable incomes, the demand for branded snacks is expected to increase. Additionally, the rising health consciousness owing to sedentary lifestyles and the increasing incidences of lifestyle diseases in developed and developing countries have resulted in the demand for “healthy” snacks. This demand is only expected to increase in the future and presents lucrative opportunities for both existing and new players.
The European region dominated the food extrusion market.
The presence of a developed snack food market offers the European food extrusion market a prominent consumer base with opportunistic growth prospects. The growth of the food industry in this region is estimated to be driven by increasing consumption of processed product types in Eastern & Southeastern European countries. Increasing consumption of snack product types in this region has also compelled manufacturers to source extruded snack products from other parts of the world for an uninterrupted supply of raw materials, as domestic production is not sufficient to meet the demand from the food industry of Europe.
Top Companies in the Food Extrusion Market
The key service providers in this market include Bühler (Switzerland), Akron Tool & Die (US), Baker Perkins (UK), Coperion (Germany), GEA (Germany), KAHL Group (Germany), Triott Group (Netherlands), Flexicon (US), Groupe Legris Industries (Belgium), The Bonnot Company (US), American Extrusion International (US), Shandong Light M&E Co., Ltd (China), Snactek (India).
