The natural extracts market - Italy

1.1 Definition and presentation

Natural extracts are solutions rich in active ingredients obtained from plant raw materials. Extracts can have a liquid, solid or spring consistency and are mainly used in pharmaceutical, cosmetic and herbal medicine. Usually, natural extracts are divided into the following categories:

-Aqueous plant extracts prepared by steeping herbs in water

-Glyceric and hydro-glyceric extracts obtained by using glycerin as a solvent

-Alcoholic extracts obtained by steeping plants in alcohol (ethinol is often used)

-Essential oils obtained by steam distillation from the fresh plant or by cold-pressing it

-Plant oils, butters and waxes obtained by squeezing or pressing the hardest part of the plant such as the roots or seeds.

As forthe global market, it is estimated at $23.7 billion in 2019 and is expected to reach $59.4 billion by 2025, with a growth of 16.5 percent between 2019 and 2025. One reason for this strong growth is the fact that many consumers prefer natural products as a healthier alternative to synthetic products.

Consistent with the global market, the Italian market is growing strongly, especially in terms of the consumption of supplements, mainly composed of plant extracts, which registered a 2.5 percent increase between the year 2018 and 2019 reaching 261 million packs sold with a value of 3.5 billion euros.

The main trend in the market is to use this type of product more and more in the cosmetics and perfumery sector with the aim of eliminating unhealthy chemicals and creating 100% natural products. A second trend is also to use plant extracts as an integral part of the diet in order to have a healthy and balanced lifestyle even when not taking the right amounts of vitamins or minerals.