Phosphate Rock Market Size, Share, Global Market Research and Industry Forecast Report 2019-2025 (Includes Business Impact of COVID-19)

                                          
Industry Insights, Market Size, CAGR, High-Level Analysis: Phosphate Rock Market


The global phosphate rock market size was valued at USD 24.4 billion in 2018 and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 7.1% from 2019 to 2025. The growth is driven by the increasing use of fertilizers in crop production to meet the growing food demand. In addition, rising demand for the product as an additive and preservative to enhance the taste and shelf life of processed food is anticipated to fuel the market growth.

Phosphate rock is a sedimentary rock mined from clay deposits. It contains a high amount of minerals and is mined & processed to form phosphoric acid and elemental phosphorus. Processed phosphate is used in various applications such as fertilizers, animal feed, detergent, food & beverages, toothpaste, chemicals, and metal coatings.

Increasing world population coupled with growing food demand is expected to drive the need for cereals and grains over the coming years. According to the World Bank, the global population increased from 7.51 billion in 2017 to 7.59 billion in 2018. The increase in the population is projected to lead to increased need for food supply, thus, propelling the utilization of fertilizers in crop production. This is likely to augment the product utilization in fertilizer production over the coming years.

The demand for processed food & beverages is driven by rapid urbanization and the establishment of numerous quick-serve restaurants. According to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, around 68% of the global population is anticipated to live in urban areas by 2050. This is projected to drive the demand for processed food over the coming years, thereby propelling the growth of phosphate rock market.
The market growth is likely to be hindered despite the growing product demand, on account of the availability of substitutes. For instance, in animal feed industry, phytase is preferred over feed phosphate owing to its low cost. The product has similar functionalities such as it improves bone strength, digestion, and enhances energy. Phytase also promotes high intake of feed, thus helping in the physical development of livestock. The benefits of phytase are anticipated to negatively impact growth of phosphate rock industry over the coming years.

Application Insights of Phosphate Rock Market

Fertilizers was the leading application segment in 2018, in terms of both volume & revenue, and the trend is anticipated to continue over the forecast period. Growing use of fertilizers in farming to provide sufficient nutrients to the soil is anticipated to boost the market growth over the coming years. Phosphate rock is used as a raw material in fertilizers. It is the only source of phosphorous used in manufacturing nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (NPK) fertilizers. NPK nutrients are combined and used as a fertilizer to boost healthy plant growth.
Animal feed segment is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8.5%, in terms of revenue, from 2019 to 2025. Phosphorus is majorly used in feed as monocalcium phosphate (MCP) and calcium phosphate (DCP). It improves bone strength, digestion, and improves fertility in animals. The growing demand for dairy products and meat is anticipated to drive the market growth over the coming years.

Other applications include chemicals and food. The availability of various fast food chains and retail outlets is likely to boost the demand for processed & packaged food products owing to consumer preference for instant and on-the-go food products. This, in turn, is likely to augment the market growth over the coming years. Moreover, phosphate-based chemicals are used in the production of detergents, pesticides, metal coatings, toothpaste, matches, and water softeners.

Regional Insights of Phosphate Rock Market

Asia Pacific held the largest market share of 59.3%, in terms of revenue, in 2018 and is expected to grow at a rapid pace over the coming years. The growth is bolstered by diversified food needs in developing and largely populated countries such as China and India. Growing demand for food in the region is expected to fuel the utilization of fertilizers to increase the efficiency of crop production.

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, China and India accounted for 18.8% and 9.2% of the world crop production, respectively in 2018. The farmers in the region have been taking efforts for increasing the yield and soil quality by experimenting the use of several soil nutrients, which has in turn favorably impacted the market growth.

North America market growth is driven by high animal feed production. The U.S. accounted for 88.4% of the North America market share in 2018. It is the largest consumer of meat and meat products in the region. According to data by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the consumption of meat in the U.S. increased by 3.1% from 2017 to 2018. The rising demand for high-quality meat products is anticipated to fuel the demand for nutritious animal feed products, which, in turn, is likely to augment the utilization of the product over the coming years.
The Middle East and Africa is projected to grow at a CAGR of 4.0%, in terms of revenue, from 2019 to 2025. Africa has the largest phosphate rock reserves in the world and was the second-largest producer in 2018. According to the USGS, Morocco and Western Sahara together have over 70% of the world reserves.

Market Share Insights of Phosphate Rock Market

The global market is highly competitive in nature owing to the presence of major players such as Itafos; The Mosiac Company; Phosphate Resources Ltd.; Nutrien Ltd.; OCP; Misr Phosphate; GUIZHOU CHANHEN CHEMICAL CORPORATION; Hubei Xingfa Chemicals Group Co., Ltd.; Yunnan Phosphate Haikou Co., Ltd.; PhosAgro, Fertoz; and J R Simplot.

Mergers & acquisitions are the key strategies adopted by major players in the market. For instance, in January 2018, Itafos acquired Conda Phosphate Operations from Agrium Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nutrien Ltd. Conda produces 540,000 metric tons of phosphate-based products annually. The acquisition included phosphate production facilities and phosphate mineral rights.

Segmentations, Sub Segmentations, CAGR, & High-Level Analysis overview of Phosphate Rock Market Research Report

This report forecasts revenue and volume growth at global, regional, and country levels and provides an analysis of the industry trends in each of the sub-segments from 2014 to 2025. For the purpose of this study, this market research report has segmented the global phosphate rock market report on the basis of application and region:

Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Million; Volume, Kilotons, 2019 - 2030)

  
Fertilizers
  
Animal Feed
  
Others