The cooler box market includes major Tier I and II companies like Sonoco ThermoSafe (US), B Medical Systems (Luxembourg), Blowkings (India), ISONOVA (Italy), Eurobox Logistics (Romania), Nilkamal Ltd. (India), AOV International LLP (India), Cool Ice Box Co Ltd (UK), Apex International (India), Softbox Systems Ltd. (UK), va-Q-tec AG (Germany), Coldchain Technologies, Inc. (US), Sofrigam Group (France), FEURER GmbH (Germany), ORCA Coolers (US), Cold Chain Controls (India), CIP Industries CC (South Africa), Igloo Coolers (US), Liderkit (Spain), YETI Coolers, LLC (US), Dhruvraj Syndicate (India), MB Plastic Industries (India), Rollawaycontainer (Italy), K2 coolers (US), Grizzly Coolers LLC (US), Koolatron (Canada), Coleman Company, Inc.(US),Cambro (US), Engel Coolers (US), Harwal Group of Companies (UAE), Polar Tech Industries Inc. (US), Embalex S.L.U., and AUCMA Company Limited (China). These suppliers have their manufacturing facilities spread across various countries across Asia Pacific, Europe, North America, South America, and Middle East & Africa. COVID-19 has impacted their businesses as well.
Food security, food safety, economic & environmental sustainability, and minimal food waste are major focus areas in the food industry. Food loss and waste are caused due to various reasons. For instance, perishable products are often exposed to fluctuating temperatures during transit and handling, which results in their spoilage and wastage. To overcome this, the demand for thermal controlled packaging solutions such as cooler boxes has increased across the globe.
Growing concerns related to the environmental impact of packaging waste have caused governments worldwide to adopt firm policies. For instance, the Indian government updated its Plastic Waste Management Norms on June 26, 2020. Standard tests are also conducted to validate the ability of packaging systems to maintain the temperature range mandated by the International Safe Transit Association (ISTA) standards, which is focused on the packaging, storage, and transportation of goods. Packaging directives from the European Commission have also led to the imposition of challenging targets for recycling since governments are exploring new ways to discourage packaging waste. Thus, increasing awareness of environmental issues and proper disposal of waste act as restraints for the growth of this market.
Emerging economies such as Brazil, India, and China provide significant growth opportunities in the insulated packaging industry. Strong economic development in China and India has provided a stimulus for the growth of the food & beverages, healthcare, and chemicals industries. Growth in these sectors has contributed to increasing demand for packaging of a wide range of products such as meat, fish, and poultry, among other perishable items. This has resulted in manufacturers of cooler boxes exploring the untapped potential of emerging countries to optimize their market share.
The raw materials used to manufacture cooler boxes include plastic, glass, paper, and metal. Most of these raw materials are crude oil-based derivatives that are vulnerable to fluctuations in commodity prices. The increased price of crude oil is a major obstacle to developing polymers such as polyurethane, polyethylene, and polystyrene. A majority of cooler boxes are made of polymer foams, which are derived from petrochemical feedstock. Thus, volatile crude oil prices are expected to affect the prices of polymer foams in the near future.
The reusable cooler box segment accounted for the larger share of the cooler box market in 2019. Reusable cooler boxes available in the consumer market are becoming more robust in terms of their exterior, with hard shells being deployed in comparison to the cardboard and foam of disposable cooler boxes. These cooler boxes are primarily used in the pharmaceutical industry, wherein maintaining the temperature of products for a longer time is a critical factor.
PU foam segment accounted for the larger share of the cooler box market in 2019. This raw material segment is expected to witness the fastest growth during the forecast period. PU foam has the lowest thermal conductivity among insulation materials, which enables space saving by using lower insulation thickness while achieving the same insulation efficiency as with other materials. This is especially important in space-limited cold chain logistics.
The cooler box market in the Asia Pacific region is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. China, Japan, South Korea, and India are the key countries contributing to the high demand for cooler boxes in the Asia Pacific region. Availability of cheap labor and raw materials has resulted in making Asia Pacific a preferred region for manufacturing facilities of cooler boxes. This makes Asia Pacific the fastest-growing region of the cooler box market.
Some of the leading players operating in the cooler box market include Sonoco ThermoSafe (US), B Medical Systems (Luxembourg), Blowkings (India), ISONOVA (Italy), Eurobox Logistics (Romania), Softbox Systems Ltd. (UK), va-Q-tec AG (Germany), Coldchain Technologies, Inc. (US), Sofrigam Group (France) and FEURER GmbH (Germany). These players have expansions, acquisitions, agreements, product launches and investment as the major strategies to consolidate their position in the market.