Food Processing Blades Market

Market Overview

The global food processing blades market size was valued at USD 0.916 billion in 2022. It is estimated to reach USD 1.71 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 7.2% during the forecast period (2023–2031). The growth in the food and beverage industry and increased consumption of meat and meat products are expected to stimulate market growth.

Food processing blades are essential tools used in the food industry for various cutting and processing tasks. These specialized blades are designed to meet specific food processing requirements, ensuring precise and efficient results. They are used in various applications, including commercial kitchens, manufacturing plants, and industrial food processing facilities. Food processing blades are made from high-quality materials, like stainless steel or carbon steel, which offer durability, sharpness, and resistance to corrosion. The blades undergo stringent manufacturing processes to ensure they meet industry standards and maintain the highest levels of hygiene and safety.

Circular blades are one of the most common types of food processing blades. They are typically used for slicing or cutting food products like meats, fruits, vegetables, and bread. These blades can be solid or serrated depending on the desired cutting result. The circular shape allows for precise and consistent cuts, ensuring uniformity in food processing operations. Dicer blades are another important type of food processing blade. They are designed to create uniform cubes or dice of fruits, vegetables, or other food products. Dicer blades, such as in vegetable processing plants or salad production facilities, are commonly used in commercial food processing operations. These blades enable efficient and consistent dicing, saving time and effort in food preparation. Shredding blades are vital in food processing, particularly for shredding or grating items. These blades have sharp, serrated edges that efficiently shred or grate food products, such as cheese, carrots, cabbage, or potatoes. Shredding blades are commonly used in food manufacturing plants, where large quantities of shredded ingredients are required for various products.

Market Dynamics

Global Food Processing Blades Market Drivers

Growth in the Food and Beverage Industry

The rapidly expanding food and beverage business is expected to boost demand for processing equipment used during various processes, including preparation, grading, sorting, peeling/skinning, cutting/chopping, and extrusion. The rapidly growing population in the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East regions, coupled with the high demand for processed food products, is expected to affect the growth of the food and beverage industry positively. Factors such as rising consumer preferences for high-quality products and ongoing product innovation are expected to drive the expansion of the food and beverage industry.

Rising innovation and product development by food and beverage manufacturers due to changing lifestyles and consumer trends are anticipated to positively impact the adoption of food processing blades. Rising awareness regarding health among consumers is also expected to increase the demand for food products with multifunctional benefits and nutritional value.

Increase Consumption of Meat and Meat Products

The rising demand for meat, seafood, and poultry is likely to augment the global food processing blades market growth. Increasing consumption of protein-based food products, frozen meat, and fruits and vegetables, along with increasing adoption of healthy food products in developed countries, is anticipated to increase the requirement for higher food production. In recent years, the demand for meat, poultry, and seafood has witnessed substantial growth as compared to the past. The increasing protein consumption can be attributed to rising awareness about consuming nutritious food. The increased demand for various food products is expected to positively impact the food processing blades market.

The aggregate demand for poultry, meat, and seafood is expected to gain traction over the anticipated period owing to improvements in the economic scenario of both developing and developed regions. Meat processors select their equipment based on the type of meat to be processed. Meat processing involves various physical and chemical treatment methods and various other methods. Various processing methods that include cutting, blending, stuffing and filling, grinding, drying, slicing, smoking, and massaging are performed with the help of different equipment.

Global Food Processing Blades Market Restraints

Volatility in Raw Material Pricing and Demand-Supply Constraints

Steel is an alloy of iron and alloying elements such as nickel, chromium, and titanium. It is widely used in various end-use sectors such as construction, automotive, and manufacturing because of its favorable performance attributes, such as high tensile strength. Dwindling costs of the raw materials force the manufacturers to incur minimal price changes in production costs. Steel and finished steel (stainless, high-speed, and tool steel) are food processing blade manufacturers' primary raw material sources. High-grade ground hardened stainless steel is primarily used in the manufacturing of blades for various applications such as vegetable processing, meat and poultry processing, seafood processing, and the production of bakery products.

Global Food Processing Blades Market Opportunities

Increasing Demand for Processed and Convenience Foods

The rising popularity of convenience and processed meals presents significant global food processing blades market opportunities. As consumers' lifestyles become busier and more time-constrained, there is a growing preference for ready-to-eat and convenience food products. This trend is driven by urbanization, rising disposable incomes, and changing dietary habits. Food processing blades are crucial in producing processed and convenience foods by facilitating cutting, slicing, and dicing operations. These blades are used in food processing equipment such as slicers, dicers, choppers, and mixers to ensure efficient and precise food preparation. The demand for food processing blades is directly linked to the growth of the processed and convenience food industry.

Regional Analysis

Based on region, the global food processing blades market is bifurcated into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Central and South America, the Middle East and Africa.

North America Dominates the Global Market

North America is the most significant global food processing blades market shareholder and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 7% over the forecast period. North American food processing blades are a mature market. Rapid urbanization, increasing spending power, high household income, industrialization, and consumer food preferences are projected to strengthen the market position. The region has a favorable government framework, infrastructure, and technologically advanced machinery, which is anticipated to propel the expansion of the food processing industry and boost the demand for food processing blades.

Further, the manufacturers of food processing blades in the North American region focus on expanding their geographical reach and targeting countries like South Africa to boost their revenues. The expansion of the food industry in North America has been underway for several years. The industry has grown briskly with contributions from food processing equipment and technology. The processing equipment and blades have witnessed significant growth in countries such as the U.S. and Canada in the last five years, owing to the high demand from the processed food industry.

Europe is anticipated to exhibit a CAGR of 6.2% over the forecast period. The COVID-19 pandemic's effects, according to the European Commission, severely impacted Europe's economy in the first quarter of 2020; however, it rebounded significantly with the slow easing of containment measures. According to the IMF, the spread of COVID-19 throughout Europe is expected to lead to a sluggish economic recovery in the region in the coming years. With swift vaccination drives and improved private spending, the GDP growth of Europe is estimated to rebound by 5.0% in 2021.

Additionally, the flourishing food and beverage industry, the ongoing economic development, and the implementation of favorable industrial policies are prominent factors that trigger Europe's food processing blades market growth. The government regulations and policies supporting the overall growth of the food processing industry in Europe fuel the growth of the food processing blades market in the region. Despite economic inflation, Europe is a prominent market for food processing blades worldwide. Industrial automation, mergers and acquisitions, strategic policy formulations, and expansions contribute to the overall growth of the market in the region.

In Asia-Pacific, increasing population, rapid industrialization, and economic growth have ensured the rapid expansion of the region's food and beverage processing industry. Growing seafood production due to vast coastlines is expected to increase the demand for seafood and food processing blades. Moreover, the growing adoption of automation in food processing and technological advancements in Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT) are responsible for the growing adoption of food processing equipment.

The Central and South America region was one of the hardest-hit regions by the COVID-19 virus. The pandemic is significantly affecting the socio-economic landscape of the region, exacerbating an existing complex scenario of structural weaknesses such as high informality and inequality, low productivity, and deficient public services and institutions.

Middle Eastern countries are looking to reduce reliance on food and beverage imports and are developing their food processing industry. Investments in the food sector in Saudi Arabia reached approx. USD 21.82 billion till June 2021, as per the Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources, Saudi Arabia. The quest to increase food security in the country is expected to impact food processing equipment, including blades positively.

Segmental Analysis

The global food processing blades market is bifurcated into products, applications, and end-use.

The global food processing blades market is bifurcated straight, curved, and circular based on products.

The straight segment dominates the global market and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 7.1% over the forecast period. The food processing industry uses blades and knives for grinding, cutting, dicing, and slicing meat, vegetables, and other products. The industry utilizes various blades, such as straight, curved, and circular. Straight blades process meat and other foods such as vegetables, fruits, and nuts to provide clean cuts, as required. Blades that do not have a curvature and do not possess any tangential curvature are considered straight blades. These blades are made from various steel alloys, including powdered metals. They are manufactured using polishing, grinding, heat treating, laser cutting, and blanking to ensure superior cutting performance.

Based on application, the global food processing blades market is bifurcated into grinding, slicing, dicing, skinning, peeling, and cutting/portioning.

The grinding segment dominates the global market and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 7.6% over the forecast period. Grinding blades are used to reduce the particle size of foodstuff. In grinding equipment, meat, vegetables, fruits, or other food is forced through a grinding plate, preceded by a rotating blade. Grinding blades installed in the equipment are of different shapes and sizes. The size of the grinding blades varies depending on the range and volume of the foodstuff to be processed. Grinding blades can vary from small, manual equipment for processing a few kilograms of foodstuff to electrical grinders that can process thousands of kilograms of meat and other foodstuffs per hour.

In addition,pump-driven grinding blades offer more advantages and help maintain product particle definition. This type of equipment is also used when grind appearance is required for retail sold ground meat. The size and number of blades and the opening of plates vary depending on the degree of grinding. The grinding equipment is also sometimes combined with a fixer and used for regrinding meat mixed with spices. This combination is most commonly used for sausages. Grinding equipment is also used for pre-breaking and reducing the size of frozen meat blocks, vegetables, and fruits.

The global food processing blades market is bifurcated into proteins and other foods based on end-use.

The proteins segment dominates the global market and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 7.2% over the forecast period. The consumption and manufacture of poultry, meat, fish, beef, pork, and bovine are projected to grow due to rising demand from developed economies such as the U.S., the U.K., and Germany. Factors like lower prices of beef, pork, fish, and poultry; increased focus on the quality and safety of meat products; and the rising per capita consumption of meat are likely to promote the demand for meat products, thereby supporting the demand for blades in applications such as grinding, cutting, slicing, and dicing.

Recent Developments

• April 2023- Hyde Industrial Blade Solutions announced the launch of its new line of high-performance food processing blades. The new blades are made from a proprietary blend of materials designed to be more durable and long-lasting than traditional blades.
• March 2023- Baucor announced the launch of its new line of food processing blades designed to be more energy-efficient. The new blades are made from a new material that is less cutting-resistant, which helps reduce energy consumption.