Food Grade Lubricants Market Size & Share Analysis - Trends, Drivers, Competitive Landscape, and Forecasts (2024 - 2030)

Food-Grade Lubricants Market Growth Drivers & Opportunities

Growing Food and Beverage Industry Is Biggest Market Driver

• The biggest driver for the food-grade lubricants market is the growing food and beverage industry.
• With people’s increasing purchasing power, they are increasingly spending on processed food products, including sauces, baked goods, precut fruits and vegetables, pre-milled flour, canned meats, snacking items, beverages, and others.
• Further, amidst their busy schedules, many people are unable to find the time to have a properly cooked meal. This propels the demand for on-the-go and ready-to-eat meals, which often includes ultra-processed and packaged products.
• This is driving the growth of the processed food industry, reflected in the construction of an increasing number of factories around the world.
• For instance, in 2021, the Indian government approved the setup of 56 mega food parks and agro processing clusters in different states of the country. These facilities use a wide array of machines for washing, peeling, dicing, slicing, mixing, whisking, whipping, frying, steaming, baking, and many other cooking-related processes.
• Further, there are machines that transfer food products in various stage of processing to different parts of a facility. This includes conveyer belts, pipes, and hoses, all of need proper lubrication of their moving parts to prevent friction and enhance productivity.
• Machines that come in direct contact with food products are subject to stringent regulations for safety, which raises the demand for specially crafted lubricants that would not risk consumers’ health.

Technological Advancements Offer Market Opportunity

• Recent technological advancements have resulted in a significant increase in the use of automated lubrication systems.
• The use of these systems reduces the chances of equipment failure by 50%, while lowering maintenance costs.
• The systems are useful for both static and mobile equipment where lubricant supply can be regulated at equal intervals.
• They also aid to reduce the risk of contamination.
• Manufacturers are also shifting their focus toward automated units to ensure that products produced are of superior quality, creating lucrative opportunities for the food-grade lubricants market to grow.
• Furthermore, the rising consumer concerns about the safety of food products may present new opportunities for food-grade lubricant manufacturers to innovate and introduce novel products.

Lack of Technical Knowledge among Factory Staff Hampers Market Growth

• A key challenge for the food-grade lubricants market is the lack of technical knowledge on these products among the factory staff.
• There are different grades of such chemicals based on the possibility of contact with the food.
• Among these, H2 lubricants, which are intended for machine parts that do not come into direct food contact, are often confused with H1 lubricants, which are applied to machine parts that have the possibility of incidental food contact.
• Even the maximum concentration of H1 lubricants in food products is set at 10 ppm, while food contaminated with H2 lubricants is instantly discarded.
• This is why workers handling these chemicals and the machinery must be knowledgeable of all these grades, failing which the food processing company may be subject to hefty fines and even plant closures in extreme cases.

Food-Grade Lubricants Market Analysis

Product Insights

The mineral oil category dominates the market in 2024 with 55% share. This is ascribed to their low cost in comparison to other products, and their high demand in the beverage, food, and cosmetic industries. Additionally, the presence of a larger number of mineral oil producers plays a vital role in the growth of the market in this category. Lubricants for machines used in all industries have traditionally been made from crude oil, which is why processing technologies are mature, highly productive, and cost-effective.

The bio-based category will witness the highest CAGR during this decade, of 9.2%. This is primarily attributed to the growing environmental concerns with the extraction and processing of crude oil into diverse end-use products. Further, the rising awareness of the ingredients in food products and the processing technology, especially of their effects on health, is driving the demand for lubricants source from natural sources, such as plant- and animal-based fats. Additionally, the technological advancements in the chemical industry have yielded new processes to create lubricants from natural sources efficiently, sustainably, and cost-effectively.

The segment has the following categories:

• Mineral (Largest Category)
• Synthetic
• Bio-Based (Fastest-Growing Category)

Application Insights

The food category accounts for the largest revenue share, of 40%, in 2024. This is on account of the rising consumption of confectionery, dairy, bakery, poultry, meat, and seafood products. In addition, the increasing consumer awareness, as well as preference for high-quality attributes of meat, is set to intensify the growth of the poultry, meat, and seafood industry.

Because of changing lifestyles that increase on-the-go eating habits and a surging trend to substitute meals with smaller nutritional snacks, people are increasingly incorporating ready-to-eat and processed meat products into their daily diet. Moreover, growing consumer knowledge about protein ingredients, as well as branding efforts by major manufacturers worldwide, is expected to shift consumer perception that meat products are healthier sources of protein than a vegetarian diet. These factors are driving the market in this category all over the world.

The pharmaceutical category will have the highest CAGR, during this decade. This because the product safety and efficacy regulations on the pharmaceutical industry are the strictest in the world, especially in developed countries. No degree of contamination is allowed in medicinal products, which makes the usage of compliant lubricants in machines vita. Moreover, around the world, the growing incidence of all kinds of diseases, a booming geriatric population, increasing purchasing power, and rising health awareness are propelling the pharmaceutical industry and encouraging R&D.

The below-mentioned applications are covered:

• Food (Largest Category)
• Beverages
• Pharmaceuticals (Fastest-Growing Category)
• Cosmetics
• Others

Regional Analysis

• The European food-grade lubricants market accounts for the highest revenue share of 40%, in 2024.
• This is on account of the presence of well-established and developed manufacturing sectors in the region.
• Moreover, the post-recession recovery of the overall economy combined with the surging demand for grease and lubricants in modern machinery is expected to drive market growth.
• One of the other key factors propelling the need for bio-based food-grade lubricants in the region is the surging demand for processed food and beverages.
• Consumers in the region are becoming more aware of the health benefits of processed food, which is expected to drive the requirement for these lubricants in the food processing industry.
• Moreover, in comparison to the rest of the world, Europe's food quality control and standards are exceptionally high and strict, which results in the surging use of high-quality lubricants.
• In the region, there are around 240,000 manufacturing companies that use food-grade lubricants.
• The APAC market is projected to observe the fastest growth, advancing at a CAGR of 9.5%, during the forecast period.
• This can be ascribed to the mounting and changing trend in the food industry and the increasing consumer acceptance of processed food in countries like China, India, and Japan.
• In addition, lubricants made from vegetable oil and animal fat are widely used in industries, such as food processing, cosmetics, and pharmaceutical, for machine protection applications, in the region.
• Furthermore, R&D initiatives such as the development of bio-based counterparts to reduce harmful environmental effects are also expected to boost the demand for food-grade lubricants.
• China is expected to lead the APAC market in the forecast period. Favorable policies from the government along with the snowballing focus on environmental concerns are projected to propel the need for bio-based lubricants.
• In addition, the product innovation and introduction of high-performance products, and the government strategies aimed at increasing the usage of bio-based lubricants are expected to drive market growth.

The report offers analysis for these regions and countries:

• North America
  • U.S. (Larger and Faster-Growing Country Market)
  • Canada
• Europe (Largest Regional Market)
  • Germany (Largest and Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • U.K.
  • France
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Rest of Europe
• Asia-Pacific (APAC) (Fastest-Growing Regional Market)
  • China (Largest Country Market)
  • India (Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • Japan
  • Australia
  • South Korea
  • Rest of APAC
• Latin America (LATAM)
  • Brazil (Largest and Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • Mexico
  • Rest of LATAM
• Middle East and Africa (MEA)
  • Saudi Arabia (Largest and Fastest-Growing Country Market)
  • U.A.E.
  • South Africa
  • Rest of MEA

Food-Grade Lubricants Market Share

The food-grade lubricants market is fragmented owing to the wide variety of such chemicals available for diverse applications. Further, mineral-oil-based lubricants are relatively easier to procure than those made from natural sources. Further, all industries are not concentrated in one region, which leads to the dominance of different countries in different areas around the world.

Food-Grade Lubricants Market News

• In July 2024, FUCHS Petrolub AG acquired LUBCON Group, which produces high-performance specialty lubricants for various industries, including railways, paper, roller bearings, textiles, pharmaceutical, food, and wind turbines.
• In July 2024, BP plc finalized investment plans for the development of the Kaskida project in an area of the Gulf of Mexico administered by the U.S. BP’s sixth E&P hub in this area, it will have a projected capacity of 80,000 barrels of oil per day.
• In June 2024, TotalEnergies SA acquired a 60% share in Block STP02, which is located off the coast of Sao Tome and Principe.
• In May 2024, ExxonMobil Corporation acquired Pioneer Natural Resources, post which the former now owns more than 1.4 million net acres in the Midland and Delaware basins with resources of an estimated 16 billion barrels of oil equivalent.