Bleaching clay, also known as activated bleaching earth, is used in the bleaching process of edible oils and other mineral oils to remove the impurities and decolorize requirements. According to BlueQuark Research & Consulting, the global Bleaching clay market is expected to witness a considerable growth rate during the forecast period. The consumption of bleaching clay is highly driven by the rising production of edible oils globally and the less environmental impact of bleaching clay. The consumption of bleaching clay is highly reliant on the production of edible oils across the globe.

In vegetable oil processing, bleaching clay removes a wide range of impurities. Bleaching effectively eliminates pigments such as chlorophyll, carotenoids, contaminants such as soaps, and traces of metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, phosphatides, and other pollutants. According to The Organizations for Economic Cooperation and Development, global vegetable oil production is predicted to grow at 1.7% per year. The global need for refined vegetable oil is anticipated to extend by 28 million tons by 2028, likely to reduce inventories and support vegetable oil prices. The demand for vegetable oils is highly driven by the increasing need for organic health-based products and growing applications of vegetable oils, such as lubricants for industrial and transportation applications. Global production of a vegetable oil depends on the crush of oilseeds and the continual output of tropical oil plants (mainly palm oil). Global palm oil manufacturing is concentrated in Indonesia and Malaysia, accounting for about one-third of the global vegetable oil production. In 2019, global palm oil production increased by 2%, from 74.2 million metric tons in 2018 to 75.7 million metric tons. Indonesia and Malaysia accounted for about 84% of global palm oil production. Indonesia's output increased by 1% to 43.3 million metric tons, and Malaysia's production grew by 3% to 20.0 million metric tons. The global need for palm oil grew by 9% to 77.9 million metric tons in 2019. Demand in Indonesia surged by 20% to 14.5 million metric tons, mainly owing to the higher biodiesel mandate. Demand in India raised by 10% to 10.3 million metric tons as edible oil consumption grew. Also, the order in China increased by 27% to 6.9 million metric tons due to the decreased supply of substitute products such as soybean oil and lard owing to the African Swine Fever (ASF). The global vegetable oil manufacture in May 2020 stood at 203.9 million metric tons in contrast to 203.4 million metric tons in May 2019. This sluggish increase of 0.2% was mostly due to the slowdown in palm and coconut oil production. The global activated bleaching clay market is expected to be driven by the steady growth in the production of vegetable oils globally.

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has significantly affected the end-user industries in the bleaching clay market. After the conclusions taken by the authorities to execute lockdowns and the restrictions on the operations of food outlets, there has been a decrease in the demand for edible oils from the restaurant and hotel chains. However, there has been a demand for edible oils for household consumption. For the short-term period, the need for edible oils is driven by household consumption.

There are ongoing developments and investments in the bleaching clay industry to utilize or extract the oil from the spent bleach clay (SBC). SBC consists of oil content in a range of 20-30% after the bleaching process. The oils extracted from SBC can be used as a feedstock for biodiesels. Non-thermal in situ trans-methylation and trans-ethylation of oils in the SBC are rapid with an alkaline catalyst. This process can be deployed in the large-scale production of biodiesel.

The global Bleaching Clay Market is segmented based on type, application, and end use industry. The End-use segment is further fragmented as Food and Beverage, Cosmetics, Chemical Processing, and Others. The food and beverage sector in the Asian region is increasing significantly due to the growing adoption of packaged food and considerable population presence.

The crude oil is refined to eliminate undesired impurities, including gums, free fatty acids (FFA), coloring components, traces of metals, and volatile components. The FFA is removed to less than 0.1% in the refined oil either by chemical or physical refining during the refining process. Preference is considered for physical rather than chemical refining of crude oil as the bleaching of clay has a minimum environmental impact. Food-grade bleaching clay is made of high-quality bentonite bulk through sodium modification, washing, and refining of the refined production process. Food-grade bleaching clay is milky white and tasteless powder. Food-grade bleaching clay has a unique crystal structure and has a large surface area, adsorption, decolorization, and substantial expansion. Bleaching clay is put together with edible oils and fats under vacuum conditions. Sometimes minimum amounts of carbon black are also mixed into the mixture. After bleaching for approximately 30-90 minutes, the oil gets isolated using filters from the bleaching clay. In the food & beverage sector, the equipment utilized for bleaching consists of vacuum generators, mixing vessels, and filters. Between food-grade bleaching clay and food-grade, sodium bleaching clay is superior to calcium-based bleaching clay. Calcium-based bleaching clay is extremely distributed since sodium-based bleaching clay is relatively rare. However, sodium-based bleaching clay is mainly used in the food and beverage industry. One of the largest manufacturers of bleaching clay, China has rich bentonite resources with total reserves of 2.46 billion tons. Sodium bentonite and calcium bentonite reported for about 27% and 31% of the total funds, respectively, in the country. The remains are aluminum bentonite and hydrogen bentonite. In terms of usage, Asia-Pacific is expected to be the primary food and beverage market due to the continuously surging demand for food from the significant presence of the population. Bleaching clay is likely to remain a prominent product in the food & beverage industry, which is anticipated to propel the rising consumption of bleaching clay in the coming years.

The global Bleaching Clay Market is segmented into Asia Pacific, North America, South America, Europe, and Middle East & Africa based on geography. Asia-pacific was the largest market for bleaching clay in both production and consumption. The usage of bleaching clay in the region is primarily driven by countries, including China, India, Indonesia, and Malaysia.

With the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic in the US, the GDP growth rate for the first quarter of 2020 was -4.8%, in contrast to the growth rate of 2.1% in the fourth quarter of 2019. Soybean oil is a highly used refined edible oil in the United States, owing to the presence of comprehensive cultivation and utilization of Soybean. It is usually found in canned fish, fried foods, margarine, and salad dressing. In 2019, the country's total consumption of soybean oil stood at 10.67 million metric tons, accompanied by canola oil at 2.47 million metric tons. The soybean production in the US for 2020/21 is projected to reach 4.125 billion bushels, increasing by 568 million bushels from 2019/20. The increase is mainly due to farmers' intentions to plant 83.5 million acres of soybeans for an awaited harvested area of 82.8 million acres. The Soybean in March 2020 totaled 192 million bushels (registering its extremely highest monthly rate ever). Canola seed production is anticipated to be reduced in 2020/21 by 110 million pounds to 3.29 billion pounds. With the drop in production, there would be a depreciation in the planted area to 1.99 million from 2.04 million acres. The sunflower seed manufacture in 2020/21 is expected to increase 24% to 2.4 billion pounds. Due to higher production, there would be a surge in the planted area from 1.35 million to 1.56 million acres. Peanut manufacture in the country is awaited to reach 5.9 billion pounds in 2020/21 from 5.5 billion pounds in 2019/20. The US average yield per acre is predicted to increase by 1% to 4,000 pounds per acre. A similar trend can be seen for cottonseed production of 6.25 million short tons due to improved yield per acre. In the US, the production of Soybean is likely to witness continuous growth in the forecasted periods. However, the output of other oilseeds is expected to decline usually. The market for bleaching clay in the worldwide market is anticipated to grow at a moderate rate during the forecast period.

Edible oil was the most extensive application for the global bleaching clay market. The global bleaching clay market is highly segmented due to many manufacturers. The primary critical players in the regional market include the Oil-Dri Corporation of America, Ashapura Group, Clariant, Taiko Group of Companies, and Recoil Earth Pvt. Ltd.

In February 2020, Clariant AG announced expanding its bleaching earth production capacity at its Yuncos, Spain facility to enhance the supply in EMEA markets. This move is expected to secure a closer-to-hand supply, shorter lead times, and better service.

Our Global Bleaching Clay Market report provides deep insight into the current and future state of the Bleaching Clay Market across various regions. The study comprehensively analyzes the Bleaching Clay in segments based on Product Type (Activated and Natural), By Application (Edible Oil, Mineral Oil, and Others), By End-Use (Food and Beverage, Chemical Processing, Cosmetics, and Others), and by Geography (Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, South America, and Middle-East and Africa). The report examines the market drivers and restraints, along with the impact of Covid-19 on market growth, in detail. The study covers & includes emerging market trends, market developments, market opportunities, market size, market analysis, market segment, market dynamics, and challenges in the industry. This report also covers extensively researched competitive landscape sections with profiles of prominent companies, including their market shares and projects.