Food & Environmental Testing

The unfolding crisis in East Palestine, Ohio, where a cargo train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in early February, is just the latest high-profile incident to evince the importance of environmental testing. The derailment and subsequent controlled burn of several train cars containing the carcinogenic chemical vinyl chloride, and the potential spill of other chemicals, prompted environmental and public health concerns in the surrounding community. Reports of thousands of dead fish in nearby waterways and residents experiencing headaches and rashes, among other incidents, emerged after the derailment.

In the weeks following the event, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has deployed equipment and personnel to conduct air, water, and soil sampling. The full scale of the impacts of the spill and burn will likely not be known for years, but in the meantime, the testing will help stakeholders gauge how contamination from the chemicals may harm the environment and the health of the community, and what countermeasures should be taken in response.

Among other factors, an expanding public awareness of environmental issues (in 2022 Gallup reported that 44% of Americans were concerned about the quality of the environment, with pollution of drinking water and waterways as their main topic of concern), and an increase in government oversight and regulations have helped boost demand for environmental testing. Survey data collected by TDA confirms this increase in demand, with almost 60% of respondents, who represent a cross section of testing labs, expecting a future increase in workload.

Primary objectives of this market analysis

• Quantitatively describe the food and environmental business for 2021
• Project shipments of the major product classifications for 2022 – 2027
• Project market size & growth for 2022 – 2027
• Estimate revenues of the leading suppliers for 2021

Other objectives of this report

• Analyze economic factors driving the food and environmental market
• Identify leading suppliers in the food and environmental market
• Explore technological factors impacting products
• Estimate related markets for analyzers and related services

Sources of information for this report

• TDA proprietary database on analytical technologies
• Manufacturers earnings calls, press releases, investor presentations, annual filings
• Publications, NIH grants, literature review
• Conference proceedings
• Trade reports and featured articles
• Economic data (US Census Bureau, WEO, Pitchbook)

Food Markets

• Agriculture: Tobacco, grain and oilseed milling, other produce, livestock
• Beverage Manufacturing: distilleries, wineries, breweries, ice, bottled water, soft drink, coffee & tea
• Food Manufacturing: human food, animal food
• Food Processing: slaughterhouse, fish processing
• Testing Labs: food & beverage testing

Environmental Markets

• Environmental Services: Testing and analytical services (e.g., regulated industries, governments, hazardous waste and remediation, engineering and consulting firms)