Europe tops global market for succinic acid due to personal care industry demand
The personal care industry has an affinity for sustainable chemicals and for familiar ingredients, so components that are available in a biological form and a conventional form, like succinic, are expedient choices.
Makeup
As a cosmetic ingredient succinic has many functions and is included in formulations to accomplish, among other things, buffering and neutralizing, emulsification, surfactant tasks, thickening, stabilizing, and wetting.
For the most part, bio succinic is used as replacement ingredient in cosmetics formulations that had previously relied on the petroleum sourced version.
Being green
Biologically manufactured succinic is more desirable, as petroleum prices waver and since commercial as well as end-user consumers are more likely to make purchasing decisions with an eye toward environmental issues and locally sourced ingredients, according to the ReportLinker media release.
“However, higher price of bio succinic acid and lengthy extraction processes are primarily restraining the market growth for the next few years,” states that research company. Nonetheless they forecast that, “the global bio based succinic acid market is expected to reach market volume of 710.0 kilo tons by 2020.”
Europe
In 2013, Europe was the largest market for succinic acid. This according to data from both ReportLinker and MarketsandMarkets. Within that market, combined personal care and pharmaceuticals applications were the fastest growing, found MarketsandMarkets.
That same firm identified two leading bio succinic manufacturers for the European region: Succinity GmbH of Germany and Reverdia of The Netherlands.
Prominent companies in the bio succinic market, in particular, include BioAmber, Myraint, DSM, Mitsui & Co, Mitsubishi, BASF, Roquette Frerse S.A, Purac and Reverdia, according to LinkReporter.
The biological version of succinic holds particular relevance in the European market: “Stringent regulations in Europe towards carbon footprints have enabled significant application of bio succinic acid in various chemical manufacturing units,” explains ReportLinker.
World market
North America is moving away from conventionally sourced succinic as well and toward a preference for the bio acid, MarketsandMarkets found. And in Asia, that firm reports China is the largest consumer of succinic.
International partnerships have formed in response to the global opportunity in the succinic market. In 2011 BioAmber and Mitsui built a bio succinic acid manufacturing facility in Canada. At the time Babette Pettersen, then senior vice president of marketing and sales told Cosmetics Design, “Bio succinic acid is bio-based, made from renewable feed-stocks like agricultural crops and the plant developments reflect the trend to natural ingredients.”
Pettersen has since earned a promotion to Chief Commercial Officer at BioAmber. And while time marches on, her early assessment of the naturals market continues to be valid: “Market demand for renewable chemicals and materials is growing and consumer interest is high. Recent reports suggest that as much as 50 percent of all chemical will be renewable by 2020.”
