India’s C&T ingredients market is ready for growth

Published: 25-Oct-2010 Featured companies: Ashland Croda BASF Personal Care and Nutrition GmbH

Ingredients Sun Care

Consumers seek greater functionality

While price sensitivity among consumers contributed to slow growth of the personal care industry in the past, thriving demand for products with better functional benefits is expected to bring about a significant change, according to consulting and research group Kline & Company. India’s market for speciality personal care ingredients was estimated at over 33,000 tonnes in 2009 and Kline anticipates volume growth rate for this sector to reach 9.6% between 2010 and 2014.

In its Personal Care Ingredients 2010: India Market Analysis and Opportunities report, Kline points out that India has the potential to become a major market for personal care ingredients, with steadily increasing disposable income levels changing spending habits and awareness for new formulations growing.

Emollients are expected to see the highest volume growth, with a projected 11.3% increase by 2014. The use of UV absorbers is also growing well.

With a cosmetic market characterised by high volumes and low prices of cosmetic products, demand for speciality chemicals has been relatively low but use of such ingredients is now seen to be growing, particularly for speciality surfactants followed by conditioning polymers, which Kline says account for a combined volume market share of over 40%.

Kline says about 44% of the personal care ingredients sector is shared among six main players with the remainder taken by smaller regional players and imports. Galaxy Surfactants is a key player in the Indian personal care ingredients industry, with major suppliers including ISP, Clariant, DSM, Croda and BASF all tapping into the market and increasing competition.

"The impact of the recession on Indian personal care ingredients companies has been minimal," says Anna Ibbotson, industry manager of the chemicals & material practice at Kline. "This is because domestic suppliers have been focusing on the Indian market and did not have significant exposure to US and EU markets."