The global desiccants market size was valued at USD 1.24 billion in 2024 and is anticipated to reach around USD 2.05 billion by 2033, growing at a CAGR of 5.14% from 2024 to 2033. Rising demand for the usage of desiccants in different industries such as pharmaceutical, food, electronic, etc., increases the manufacturing rate of these moisture controlling components. Along with this, increased concern of consumers for safe and efficient food items increases the usage of desiccants for maintaining integrity of edibles globally and experiencing development of the market in the forecast period.
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Desiccants have hygroscopic properties. Being the most crucial component used for packaging of various products, it controls humidity in surroundings of different applications. It basically absorbs the moisture content from the air and helps in maintaining the quality of different products. Moisture content present in products can deteriorate the quality. The main purpose of desiccants is to store, ship, and preserve products to keep everything safe. Along with this, they help in the safe and efficient transportation of different materials and products. Desiccants are perfect option for nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, and medical devices that have chances to be damaged by chemical or physical changes when comes in contact with moisture.
Desiccants are available in different forms such as silica gel, clay, molecular sieves, activated charcoal, calcium sulfate, calcium chloride, etc. Among all these desiccants, Silica gel is most favorable type of desiccants for keeping products with an optimum temperature during storage and transportation. It has non-toxic, inert, and very stable properties due to which has become a product of choice to be used as a desiccant for many pharmaceutical industries. Additionally, food sector also requires desiccants importantly to maintain favorable conditions during shipment of food and beverage items. Factors such as temperature and humidity can degrade the quality of food items which are further not possible to be consumed by customers. Also, used for maintaining dryness in different electronic items. Various market key players globally are also trying to focus more in order to attain development and growth. Moreover, all these factors increase the demand in usage of humidity controlling agents for maintaining quality of products and also boost the growth of the desiccants market.
| Report Coverage | Details |
| Growth Rate from 2024 to 2033 | CAGR of 5.14% |
| Global Market Size in 2023 | USD 1.24 Billion |
| Global Market Size in 2024 | USD 1.30 Billion |
| Global Market Size by 2033 | USD 2.05 Billion |
| Largest Market | North America |
| Base Year | 2023 |
| Forecast Period | 2024 to 2033 |
| Segments Covered | By Type and By End-use |
| Regions Covered | North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa |
Driver: Rising demand for desiccants used in food and pharma industries
The high demand for desiccants from the food and pharmaceutical sectors expands the desiccants market growth in the forecast period and is projected to grow continuously. In food industries, desiccants play an essential role for the preservation of various edible products by maintaining moisture content of products. Along with preservation, proper transportation and shipping of food products safely is also essential. This moisture controlling product helps to transport food products efficiently without any harm. Issues related with increasing moisture content in samples results in degradation of taste, texture, appearance, nutritional content, and also provides favorable conditions for the growth of harmful microbes such as bacteria, virus, fungi, etc. Additionally, desiccants are essentially used in packaging material to protect products from moisture content during transit. All these conditions favor the usage of desiccants in the food sector which further helps in expanding the growth of the desiccants market.
In the pharma sector, desiccants are one of the most important components to avoid degradation of various moisture sensitive pharmaceutical products such as drugs, vaccines, and other medical devices. Moreover, pharmaceutical industry is one of the sectors that better understand the importance of desiccants and their contribution in maintaining the shelf life of life saving drugs. Along with this, they are also used to provide the longer shelf life to pharma items. A small fluctuation in moisture content of drugs or vaccines results in morphological changes and increases the risk of causing harm to the patients. Continuous expanding of the pharmaceutical sectors results in increasing the manufacturing practices of pharma products which is driving the desiccants market.
For instance, The Clariant Healthcare Packaging business stated that it is producing desiccant packets in Tamil Nadu, India. It helps to expand the range of desiccant products available for customers of the pharmaceutical industry in the region and also increases its usage globally. Further leads to contribute growth in the desiccants market.
Restraint: Increasing risk related to disposal and their impact on the environment
The rise in risk for proper disposal of waste material created during the production of desiccants and harmful effects of waste if not disposed of properly are the reasons hampering the growth of the market. Waste such as silica gel causes serious harm to the surroundings as well as to human health. Industries such as food and pharmaceuticals are the main reason for releasing large amounts of waste because they require more precise and quality standards in desiccants. Additionally, silica gel desiccants pouch commonly found in takeout food can be sometimes mistaken as salt or sugar packets and it is harmful for human health. Desiccant silica gels are a choking hazard for children and pets. Moreover, if taken in large quantities, desiccant silica gel can cause intestinal obstruction. All these unfavorable circumstances decrease the demand for conventional desiccant and hence decreases the growth of the global desiccants market.
Opportunity: Technological advancements
The desiccants market is projected to experience technological advancements and innovations globally. Major key market players in this sector are trying to make significant developments for their users. The ongoing research regarding technological advancements is mainly for expanding market growth. The aim of these novel products is to improve the environmental impact of desiccants by avoiding the use of harmful materials in the production of desiccants. Furthermore, various schemes and initiatives taken by the government to adopt sustainable and eco-friendly production protocols also force manufacturers to launch more environmentally safe desiccants which is to be distributed and used by various industries. Thus, these factors provide opportunities for better market growth.
For instance, Clariant, a company that focuses mainly on sustainability, took a step to improve the environmental impact of desiccants by adding plastic-free moisture adsorbing packets and increase the growth of desiccants market. The innovative novel bio-based paper desiccants are filled with granulated high-grade bentonite clay which provides most appropriate packaging conditions. These sustainable packets are highly-adsorbent, natural solutions and provide assistance to manufacturers and distributors in protecting packaged goods from moisture damage.
The silica gel segment held the largest share of the market in 2023. The reason behind the growth is that silica gel alone accounts for more than one third of the total desiccant revenue share globally. It is a product of choice among that is most frequently used in commercial applications because of its attractive properties such as having high surface area, thermal stability and higher water vapor adsorption capacity than other desiccants. In addition, it is comparatively easy to regenerate. All these circumstances favor the usage of silica gel to be used for the production of desiccants and hence propels the desiccants market.
Along with this, the activated alumina segment is the fastest growing segment of the market on the basis of product type and is also expected to grow continuously in the forecast period. It consists of alumina which acts as an important component used for removing moisture content. Activated alumina is an essential product for dehydration and drying of compressed air.
The food industry segment held the largest share of the market in 2023. Desiccants are important in the food sector to maintain safety and efficacy of edible items and prevent them from deterioration. Decaying of food items is also responsible for loss of many food items and manufacturers also face loss in their business. Moreover, this can be limited by using desiccants for maintaining safety and quality of food items which further boost the growth of the desiccants market.
The pharmaceutical industry segment is the fastest growing segment, which is expected to increase the growth of the market in the forecast period. Increasing concern for preserving, storage, and transportation of moisture sensitive pharma products such as drugs or vaccines is the reason for continuous use of desiccants in the pharmaceutical sector. Along with this, it is also used for increasing the shelf life of sensitive medicines and avoiding the growth of harmful microbes that can degrade pharma products. Hence, these expand the demand and also drive the growth in the desiccants market.
Asia Pacific dominated the market with the largest share in 2023, the region is observed to sustain the dominance during the forecast period. Various factors are responsible for driving the growth of the region. It includes technological advancements, growing demand among consumers, and regulatory support of government in promoting use of sustainable desiccants. Additionally, The APAC market region accounted for the large global production of pharmaceutical desiccants. This growth is attributed to the increased production of pharmaceutical desiccants in China and more utilization of the product in Chinese plants.
Also, developing nations of APAC such as South Korea promotes the production of desiccants for various industrial and commercial purposes including the electronics and packaging sectors. Furthermore, expansion of the production and manufacturing practices in these industries increases the demand of advanced desiccants which leads to contribution of growth in the desiccants market.
For instance, The Sanner Group declared to start new production sites with a one site in Germany, and a second manufacturing facility in China for expanding their growth worldwide. The main behind this is to enhance the packaging and desiccant portfolio for the healthcare market and to increase activities such as fully automated production and assembling of medical technology, diagnostics, and pharma drug delivery systems.
North America is the fastest growing region and is projected to grow continuously in the forecast period. The growth in the region is due to the presence of leading players in the market that are focusing mainly on technological advancements for improving the efficiency of desiccants. Continuous ongoing improvements and advancements for controlling the moisture content in various applications results in maintaining the long-term development patterns in the desiccants market. Moreover, financial stability and increasing disposable incomes make favorable conditions among individuals to invest in the best strategies.
Segments Covered in the Report
By Type
By End-user
By Geography
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