The growth in the food & beverages industry in the emerging markets has become an attractive opportunity for the betaine manufacturers. The rising awareness about health benefits associated with betaine makes it a key ingredient in food and feed preparation. Betaine is obtained either from sugar beet molasses or prepared synthetically. It is pro-vitamin type nutrient that is beneficial for the heart, kidneys, skin, brain, and liver. It also contributes to a healthy metabolism and improves physical performance, especially strength and muscle endurance. Hence, it is widely used as a dietary and nutritional supplement and also used in energy drinks. Due to the osmolytic and hydration functionality of betaine, it is majorly used as feed additive. Betaine anhydrous is a food & feed grade of betaine and is approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration for human consumption. Cocamidopropyl betaine is extensively used in the cosmetics and detergents industries owing to its mild surfactant properties.
The betaine market is projected to reach USD 3.89 Billion by 2020, at a CAGR of 5.8% during the forecast period. In 2014, the market was dominated by North America, followed by Europe. The Asia-Pacific market is projected to grow at the highest CAGR with rapid growth in the betaine market in developing countries such as China and India. The growing awareness about health benefits of betaine and increasing use of betaine in personal care products in this region are also driving the market.
Today, the demand for betaine products is increasing due to significantly rising use of betaine in the personal care industry, and rising awareness about the health benefits associated with it. This presents significant growth potential for betaine in food & beverages and animal feed industry.
The Asia-Pacific region is projected to grow at the highest CAGR with rapid growth in the betaine in developing countries such as China, Japan, and Australia.
The betaine market is highly fragmented with key market players adopting expansions and investments strategies to capture the betaine market. The market is competitive with leading players being involved in the production of betaine products for various functions by actively investing in them. The market serves to the feed manufacturers, cosmetic companies, sports drink manufacturers, and pharmaceutical companies, which manufactures dietary and nutritional supplements.
The leading players in the betaine market are Associated British Food plc (U.K.), BASF SE (Germany), Nutreco N.V. (The Netherlands), Solvay S.A. (Belgium), and E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (U.S.). The other key companies that are actively engaged in the production of betaine include American Crystal Sugar Company (U.S.), Amino GmbH (Germany), Kao Corporation (Japan), Stepan Company (U.S.), and Sunwin Chemicals (China).
