Miller Magazine Issue: 142 October 2021

89 ARTICLE MILLER / OCTOber 2021 industrial applications, supportive industrial & economic policies into these regions. Unfortunately, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic led to the implementation of lockdown which gave way to a temporary closure of production and manufacturing facilities of almost all industries. During the initial period of the pandemic, the global supply chains were disrupt- ed and the manufacturers faced a lot of challenges to transport the raw materials. This resulted in to increase in the prices of raw materials and severe economic fall- out for marketers. However, the restrictions imposed during the pan- demic have shifted the mindset of business enterprises towards e-commerce platforms. Amazon, Walmart, and other e-commerce websites have supported the global supply chain of pea starch products to a great extent, which sequentially has enhanced the demand for pea starch. Furthermore, in the past few years, a significant change in consumer’s consumption patterns has been observed across different regions. Consumers are be- coming aware of the health benefits that come from us- ing natural or plant-based ingredients, which in turn, is boosting the demand for pea starch even more. At the same time, the demand for gluten-free & lac- tose-free food products and demand for organic & nat- ural skincare & haircare products are contributing to the growth of the market. The key market players are devel- oping new products with improved taste and benefits, along with high marketing approaches, which is again, augmenting the growth of the global pea starch market. For instance, in 2020, a US-based company named PURIS, has launched a new pea starch for making sports nutrition and gummy preparation. Also, Cargill, a prime food cooperation, recently did an additional huge in- vestment in this largest North American producer of pea starch, which is expected to help PURIS expand its pro- duction facilities and meet the demand for pea starches in more than one way. Similarly, a France-based company named Roquette has launched a new pea starch technology for producing vegetarian soft gel capsule. With this drift on board, the global pea starch market is anticipated to gather huge prospects and exponential growth in the near future.