| Forecast Period | 2025-2029 |
| Market Size (2023) | USD1.26 billion |
| CAGR (2024-2029) | 4.54% |
| Fastest Growing Segment | Urea |
| Largest Market | Asia Pacific |
Market Overview
Global Non Protein Nitrogen Market was worth USD1.26 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow with a high growth rate in the forecast period with a CAGR of 4.54% in 2029.
Non-Protein Nitrogen is a category of animal nutrition components that are not proteins themselves but are utilized by bacteria of the rumen stomach to transform them into proteins. Ingredients like urea and other nitrogenous by-products are economic substitutes for plant and animal proteins in the diet of animals. However, care should be taken not to over-accumulate non-protein nitrogen since an excess of it is detrimental to growth, inducing depression and even toxicity in ammonia in animals. Actually, the sheep milk ratio of non-protein nitrogen to the entire amount of nitrogen content is estimated to be around 5-6.8%.
In human milk, too, there is a significant function to be served by non-protein nitrogenous substances. Nucleotides, amino sugars, oligosaccharides, free amino acids like taurine, arginine, glutamine, and polyamines contribute 20-30% of the nitrogen of human milk. Nucleic acid absorption, for example, depends on the quantity and quality of nucleic acid-rich cells consumed as food, i.e., fish, meat, and seeds.
Key Market Drivers
More Emphasis on Livestock Production
Non-protein nitrogen compounds (NPN) are essential nutrients in animal feed, especially in ruminant animals such as cows and sheep. These compounds, which are found in animal feed, are hydrolyzed to proteins by bacteria in the animals’ rumen. The hydrolysis supplies them with the nutrients required for growth and production.
As demand for meat and dairy continues to rise on a daily basis, there is a need to enhance the efficiency of animal production. NPN is where this is addressed. Through the inclusion of NPN in animal feeds, farmers can enhance the nutritional value of the animals, which results in greater milk production and meat yield.
Increase in the rate of population growth and change in the pattern of consumption towards high-protein food items have increased the demand for milk and meat products globally. Hence, farmers started paying attention to the productivity of their livestock and thereby increasing the demand for NPN.
Furthermore, with the rising awareness of animal nutrition and health, the farmers are ready to use higher quality feed supplements like NPN to improve the health and productivity of their cattle.
Increase in Population
Non-protein nitrogen (NPN) compounds are needed in animal diets, particularly in animals like cows, goats, and sheep. Microorganisms within the rumen of the animal break down the compounds into proteins for the supply of nutrients for their growth and productivity.
Since the population of the world is expected to be 8.6 billion by the year 2030, food demand, and particularly animal-based food like meat and milk, is on the rise at a record high. Thus, livestock producers have a huge responsibility to enhance their production to the optimum in order to fulfill this rising demand, thus the need for effective animal feeds with supplementation of NPN.
Main Market Challenges
Price Volatility of Raw Materials
Non-protein nitrogen (NPN) compounds are of utmost importance in animal nutrition, particularly in ruminants. The compounds are degraded to proteins by microbes in the rumen of the animal and therefore the animals are exposed to essential nutrients for effective growth and productivity.
For manufacturing NPN, raw materials in the form of certain fertilizers and chemical ingredients are greatly dependent upon. Due to this reason, the availability and price of these materials play a direct impact on the price of manufacturing NPN, thereby affecting the performance of the overall market.
Over the last few years, global fertilizer prices have gone to record highs and could still be rising in 2022 and beyond. Price increases are partly due to geopolitical tensions such as the Russia-Ukraine conflict that has left global fertilizer markets in chaos.
Raw material price volatility is one of the biggest challenges facing the NPN market. Not only does it increase the cost of production, hence limiting manufacturers’ profit margins, but it also impacts consumers in that such additional costs can be passed on to them, with possible implications on NPN demand.
Key Market Players
- Altech Corp
- Kemin Industries Inc
- OCI Nitrogen BV
- Orica Ltd
- SABIC
- EuroChem Group AG
- Nutrien Ltd
- ADM Alliance Nutrition Inc
- CF Industries Holdings Inc
- Incitec Pivot Ltd
| By Type | By Livestock | By Region |
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Segmental Insights
Type Insights
Based on the type category, the urea segment dominated the world market for non protein nitrogen in 2023. Urea is a popular animal feed supplement for ruminants, and it is an economical protein substitute in their diet. The cost savings and availability of urea compared to natural protein sources are key drivers of its demand in the non-protein nitrogen feed market.
Moreover, by increasing the efficiency of utilization of dietary nitrogen and reducing the nitrogen excretion through urine, urea enables the minimization of its environmental footprint, thereby driving the overall market growth. It is used most commonly on total mixed rations in dairy and feedlot cattle. Urea is also used in forage programs where pasture is supplemented with cattle using liquid feed, cubes, or blocks containing around 30% protein, where a high percentage is urea. This beneficial aspect also drives the growth of the urea market during the forecast years.
Livestock Insights
The dairy cattle market will be forecasted to witness strong growth during the forecast period. Dairy farmers, of late, have adopted the use of high-quality high-protein sources as a means of supplying balanced nutrition to dairy cattle and consequently increasing milk production. The use of genetically modified cattle breeds has brought about enhanced nutritional demand in a bid to achieve higher milk production. However, increased costs of animal feeds have moved dairy farmers to seek low-cost nutrition sources, such as non-protein nitrogen. The demand for this market has been boosted by low protein deficiency in cows that are fed low-quality fodder.
In addition, out of the ruminant animals, goats and sheep have been the leaders of the non-protein nitrogen industry with a prominent share. In sheep, more so than in goats, feed non-protein nitrogen is important to use. Increasing demand for processed meat has also generated tremendous demand for high-quality ruminants. As a significant ingredient, protein is a significant source of nutrition among ruminants. This has consequently generated increased demand for highly nutritional-value meat and dairy products, which represents a major market growth opportunity.
Also, the improved processing of important feed additives like emulsifiers, vitamins, and enzymes is expected to provide positive opportunities for the industry players. Also, the growing awareness among the consumers regarding the importance of the intake of protein from animals is expected to be one of the key drivers in molding the demand for non-protein nitrogen. All these factors combined are propelling the growth of the non-protein nitrogen market over the forecast period.
Regional Insights
Asia Pacific was the leading market participant in the Global Non Protein Nitrogen Market in 2023 with the maximum value-based market share. The APAC region’s economy is dominated by the economic condition of China and India. But due to the flow of growing foreign direct investment toward the economic growth of Southeast Asia, the scenario is now undergoing a revolutionary shift. The past few years have seen an upsurge in the population of livestock in Southeast Asia, which has been an impetus to the growing demand for the product. Moreover, the adoption of advanced technology for efficient protein generation from non-protein sources in Asian nations has resulted in widespread application of the product. Additionally, the supply of dairy products in various channels has contributed to the rise in demand for dairy products. The pandemic caused by the coronavirus has had far-reaching impacts aside from the virus transmission and the lockdown. The pandemic has also had negative impacts on the production and supply chain sectors. The International Raw Material 2000 shows that the world’s largest non-protein nitrogen producer, China, has experienced the closure of factories that produce non-protein nitrogen in the country. Accordingly, the non-protein nitrogen market has been affected to a great degree by the impact of COVID-19, and the same will prevail until 2020. However, it is anticipated that the market would experience slow growth throughout the forecast period since the impact of the pandemic would reduce gradually and the market would regain its energy.
