UK aerosol filling figures for 2023 show that volume remained stable compared to 2022, despite geo-political developments, supply chain challenges and the cost-of-living crisis.
Personal care
The survey reveals that, as anticipated, the personal care sector made up the lion’s share of filling volume accounting for 74% of the total – up from 71% in 2022. Representing the mainstay of UK aerosol manufacturing, cosmetics and toiletries, grew by nearly 3% and individual categories, such as deodorant and antiperspirant, rose by 4 ½% and nearly 13 ½%, respectively.
BAMA Chief Executive, Patrick Heskins says: “Most of the categories showing the biggest percentage shifts are the smaller ones, which have a tendency to fluctuate in line with how the year has been. For instance, self-tan more than doubled in volume and is a likely indicator of the rather wet summer of 2023.”
The filling of shaving products dropped again, signifying the ongoing trend seen since the early 2000s, and no doubt reflecting ongoing facial hair fashions which have supplanted the ‘wet shave’ in recent times. Patrick adds: “Despite the drop in filling volume this year, there are many new products coming on to the market to entice those still wet shaving to experiment with.”
Household and technical
In the household sector, macro environment factors again played a role as the post-Covid era likely affected the continued decline of hard surface cleaners. Also, from a peak of nearly 200 million in 2017, the volume of air fresheners produced in the UK dropped to 133 million in 2023. One major brand owner’s move to an “aerosol free” product during 2022/2023 may offer explanation for the significant swing. Also, the different ways fragrances can be released into the home environment has developed hugely over recent years, for example, auto spray systems which use aerosols and pump sprays as the delivery mechanism, trigger sprayers, reed diffusers, plug in devices, scented candles, and a whole host of other systems giving consumers a huge choice.
Patrick says: “While there are increased household fragrance options available, the aerosol package still has a place in this market. Perhaps, the instant benefits aerosols bring when tackling pungent odours could be revisited.”
In the technical categories, the growth of paint aerosols being filled continues on the upward trajectory it has enjoyed since the turn of the century. This, combined with stable volumes in automotive and industrial aerosol filling shows that the sector is strong, and that the aerosol dispensing system still offers lots of unique advantages compared to many other packaging formats.
Aluminium V Tinplate
The most significant change in the 2023 filling data compared to 2022 is the split between tinplate and aluminium aerosols. Of the 1.42 billion units produced during 2023, 543 million were made from tinplate, while the remaining 877 million were aluminium, producing a 62/38 percentage split. This sizable shift from 2022 suggests the impact of a move away from steel from a major brand owner, with other smaller brand owners and own label products likely following suit.
Patrick Heskins says of the shift: “There has been an on-going trend for many years in UK aerosol manufacturing to move more into aluminium containers, 2023 shows a significant jump. Also, although it is still a relatively small percentage, it is also worth noting that the volume of plastic aerosols filled is on the increase.”
Summing up the figures for 2023, Patrick commends the overall ‘astonishing achievements’ of the industry to date: “BAMA continues to be proud of what all those involved in the UK aerosol manufacturing industry have accomplished along with their continued focus on innovation while upholding incredible standards of safety and quality.”
“The volume filled in 2023 shows that aerosol dispensers are still very much a product which consumers want, need, and enjoy. I look forward to an even better 2024.”