The global protective packaging market is expected to grow at a CAGR of more than 6 percent from 2018-2022, according to a new report by Technavio. Market trends include a growing popularity of home delivery of food and grocery items; and an increased focus on sustainability.

The report breaks down the market by product, including foam protective packaging, rigid protective packaging and flexible protective packaging. As projected in 2017, around 45 percent of the market share originated from foam protective packaging. The most popular foam packaging products are foam-in-place and polyolefin rolled foam.

In terms of geography, the market has been segmented into APAC, EMEA and the Americas. As of 2017, almost 39 percent of the market share came from APAC.

“APAC dominated the global protective packaging market in 2017, and it is anticipated to project the highest growth during the forecast period. Countries such as China and India are predicted to witness the maximum growth within the region. The prominent growth driver for the protective packaging market in APAC is the growth of e-commerce,” says a senior analyst at Technavio for packaging research.

The increase in popularity of flexible protective packaging options such as air pillows and paper fills will result in the paper manufacturers gaining a competitive advantage over other vendors in the market.