European tube industry remained robust during 2020
Image: etma
According to the European Tube Manufacturers Association (etma), the European tube industry was extremely robust in 2020 despite all the difficulties on global markets during the Covid-19 pandemic. During the crisis of 2020, etma members produced 11.5 billion tubes made of aluminium, plastic and laminate due to keen demand in the first quarter. This means that the industry is only 0.4% below the previous year’s level.
Etma president, Fabio Gussoni, said: “In view of the extremely difficult economic environment and the complicated pandemic situation, our results for 2020 are really impressive. It clearly underlines the very high level of acceptance of tubes among consumers and our customers alike. Especially in times of pandemic, they were able to fully trust the convincing standards and properties of the tube in terms of hygiene and cleanliness, product protection, durability and safety.”
Gussoni also noted that etma member companies demonstrated high performance and flexibility, during the crisis. The industry’s supply chains have held up and the production processes remained largely free of disruptions, so that the deliveries to customers could be made on schedule as usual.
The shares of the individual tube types in total production remained almost unchanged. Aluminium tubes still make up 35% of all tubes delivered. With a market share of 27%, plastic tubes tended to be somewhat weaker. In contrast, laminate tubes, which now have a market share of 38%, leading the list of materials used for tubes in Europe, gained slightly.
On the other hand, there were larger shifts in 2020 in the most important sales markets for tubes. etma secretary general Gregor Spengler, said: “The pandemic in particular caused high-priced cosmetics products to suffer, because numerous sales channels and important revenue generators in the industry such as shops in city centers and at airports, cosmetic studios as well as hairdressing and beauty salons across Europe were closed for a long time. Unfortunately, this situation continued at the beginning of 2021.”
At around 1%, sales of dental care products fell only slightly in 2020. The pharmaceutical sector, the second most important sales market for the tube industry, grew by 3%. In addition, according to Spengler, the tube, as hygienic, consumer-friendly and easy-to-use packaging, also benefited from the strong increase in demand for hygiene and disinfection products during the pandemic.
