Enzymes Market (2022-2029)

The growth of this market is mainly driven by advancements in enzyme engineering & green chemistry, the introduction of genetically-engineered enzymes, growing environmental concerns and rising demand for biofuel, increase in R&D activities and investments in the enzymes sector, rising prevalence of chronic ailments, and the need for cost reduction and resource optimization in production processes. However, stringent regulations and restricted temperature & pH levels of enzymes are expected to restrain the growth of this market to some extent.

The COVID-19 pandemic adversely hit many economies around the globe. Nationwide lockdowns adversely impacted many industries globally, including fuel, leather, and textile.

COVID-19 resulted in the movement restrictions of workers, a decline in consumer demand, and the closure of production facilities. The industry also suffered severe labor shortages due to repeated lockdowns that affected production and trade movements. Supply chains were disrupted, resulting in production limitations, complications in sourcing raw materials, and higher delivery costs, impacting the global enzymes market. Moreover, governments announced a temporary ban on foreign travel. These factors affected the sales of enzymes. For instance, the COVID-19 crisis has radically changed the global context for biofuels; the production contracted by 20 billion liters (13%) in 2020, returning to 2017 output levels (Source: BAC-TO-FUEL). The textile enzymes business was no different; numerous textile businesses had either been temporarily halted or operated with a small staff due to enforced lockdowns and imposed limits by individual regulating bodies. This element had a substantial negative impact on the textile enzymes market growth.

However, COVID-19 has had a favorable impact on some industries. The demand and use of enzymes have increased in industries such as home care products, food, animal feeds, and pharmaceuticals due to increased awareness of health & wellbeing. Enzymes work as excellent cleaning agents, enable the bakery industry to maintain the freshness of products, reduce dependency on fossil fuels, and reduce water, energy, and other chemical inputs in various industrial processes.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was particularly high on some home care products, such as surface disinfectants & laundry care, nutraceuticals & dietary supplements, and some pharmaceuticals in 2020 and 2021. The sale of these products increased by 96% during the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the related examples of the positive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is the increased sales and production of home care products. For instance, according to the International Association for Soaps, Detergents and Maintenance Products (A.I.S.E.), in 2020, the European household care industry registered a growth of 4.7% from 2019.

Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic has underlined the necessity for consumer goods, nutritious foods with a balanced number of enzymes, and other energy sources. As a result, the demand for foods & beverages fortified with nutritional enzymes and other healthy components is rising across the globe. Also, as people are becoming more concerned about their health and aware of enzyme-infused products, the demand for bakery, confectionery products, dairy products, and beverages is experiencing a rapid surge in demand. For instance, according to the American Bakery Association, sales in the U.S. bakery aisle jumped an unprecedented 62.3% over a week in March 2020.

Therefore, the strong demand for pharmaceuticals, food & beverages, and home care products due to the COVID-19 pandemic is expected to support the growth of the enzymes market. Although the market's growth rate in 2020 was slightly lower than in 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic positively impacted the enzymes market.

Enzymes enable safer working conditions by eliminating chemical treatments during production processes, boosting the demand for their use in different industries. Global environmental concerns emphasize clean industrial products & processes, and enzyme technology enables clean or less polluting alternatives to the existing practices.

The increasing population and rising health awareness have resulted in increased production of food & beverages. The quality of food products from food processing industries has increased eventually by incorporating green technologies that encourage safety and shelf life. Enzymes obtained by using genetically-engineered microorganisms have prominent advantages such as increasing production yield, emphasizing economic production and strengthening enzyme purity.

The beneficial properties of genetically-engineered enzymes have increased their utilization in different food applications, including beverages (increasing yield, forming nutrients for fermentation, ease in processing, enhancing the color, aroma, flavor, and clarity of the finished product), dairy (flavor enhancement), bakery (maintaining the volume, softness of the crumb, the crispness of the crust, coloring or browning of the crust, and maintaining freshness), and meat (tenderization of meat and flavor enhancement). Moreover, future foods are emerging as a trend, encouraging more nutritious and sustainable foods. Enzyme-based technologies help enhance food products' structure, nutrition, color, and flavor. For instance, transglutaminase promotes the crosslinking of glutamine and lysine protein residues in meat products to decrease the number of raw materials required for production.

With the successful development of rDNA technology and genetic engineering, the potential of enzymes is now being explored in different applications, including paper, agronomy, and textile.

Therefore, advancements in enzyme engineering & green chemistry and the introduction of genetically-engineered enzymes in different applications are expected to boost the demand for enzymes.