Packaging trends have been shifting since before the COVID-19 pandemic and will continue after it becomes a footnote in history, although perhaps at an accelerated pace. The real drivers for change are the rise of urban living and mega-cities and increased environmental awareness. This all means that packaging-based supply chains will continue to adapt to the growing population centers and drive packaging growth and shifts.

Any increase in consumer consumption will drive the continued growth of packaging. The purchasing power of the middle class is the primary driver for increased packaging needs. As seen in the following chart, population growth and the expansion of the middle class in the emerging economic growth areas will offset the stagnant growth in the well-established economies.

The global middle class is expected to grow and reach 5.3 billion by 2030, according to a recent Brookings Institute report. Some 88% of the additional middle-class population will be Asians. China and India will represent over 43.3% of the global middle class by 2030. By 2030, over 70% of China’s population could be middle class, consuming nearly $10 trillion in goods and services, and India could be the world’s largest middle-class consumer market, surpassing both China and the U.S. Middle-class spending is expected to grow from about $37 trillion in 2017 to $64 trillion by 2030, accounting for a third of GDP growth.