Polyglycolic Acid Market – By Form, By Application and Forecast, 2025 - 2034

Polyglycolic Acid Market Size

The global polyglycolic acid market was valued at USD 9.1 billion in 2024 and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of over 4.5% from 2025 to 2034.
 

The last few years have seen a dramatic increase in the use of polyglycolic acid (PGA) in the medical field because of its biocompatibility, rate of absorption, and ease of use. These factors make it suitable for use during different medical and surgical procedures. Absorbable material are perhaps the most popular application of PGA. These supply a self- remedying solution to internal wound closure and do not need to be removed after the tissue heals.

Additionally, the polymer's rate of change is more controllable, allowing for the internal sutures to be absorbed at a predictable rate. This makes PGA sutures convenient to use in internally complicated surgical procedures. In addition to sutures, other areas of specializations using PGA like bioresorbable implants, tissue scaffolds, and fixation devices are emerging, thus increasing the chances of chronic implant-related problems. Also, new techniques in surgery increase the need for more efficient drug delivery systems. Because of its diverse range of capabilities, poly (glycolic acid) sutures can be designed to release drugs in the body and get rid of polymers without needing surgery, so there's no need to take them out. The development of such medical technology makes the role of PGA in improving healthcare become even more important with the market expecting growth.
 

Polyglycolic Acid Market Trends

The distinctive qualities of PGA (polyglycolic acid) in combination with its unique characteristics enable it to be utilized in the oil and gas industry for well drilling and hydraulic fracturing. For downhole uses that require materials for limited periods of time, PGA is exceptionally well suited due to its high biodegradability. The materials begin to disintegrate once they are no longer needed, and in turn this disintegration is useful for lowering environmental impacts and operational expenses associated with material recovery. For instance, PGA can be used to manufacture frac balls and plugs that are used during well fracturing to isolate and block off specific areas of the well, which can subsequently be dissolved instead of retrieved mechanically preventing wellbore obstructions.
 

The increasing focus on the operational performance along with the reduction of downtimes has resulted in a surge of interest towards the employment of PGA polymers, as they have the potential to minimize maintenance expenses that arise from debris recovery. Furthermore, as companies focusing on gas and oil intend to enhance their efficiency and reduce expenses, the adoption of such polymers is even more appealing because the use of PGAs leads to a reduction in regulation. Finally, a PGA is demonstrating potential as a hydraulic fracturing operation diverting agents’ material which helps to control the fracture flow pathways during resource recovery.
 

The increasing interest in the application of polyglycolic acid (PGA) within the oil and gas industry demonstrates its importance as a new material, which advances the relative growth of the market as the sector in question seeks to solve increasingly difficult extraction problems in a sustainable, efficient, and multi-purpose manner.
 

Polyglycolic Acid Market Analysis

A major concern within the market is the high cost of production, which limits its use and application in many industries. The production of PGA encompasses costly manufacturing processes as well as costly raw materials. Also, the expense for developing sophisticated technology, which can modify some attributes of PGA, including but not limited to, the controlled rates of degradation, and mechanical strengths is also enormous.
 

Such costs can be a hindrance for smaller businesses or industries that have weak material budgets. In sensitive domains like packaging where cost is the deciding factor, non-refraining genetically engineered biodegradable polymers pose stiff competition for PGA market. In final analysis, steep costs of production place limits on the widening scope of the use of PGA to sensitive areas and its prospects in other wider commercial applications are limited.
 

The segmentation of the polyglycolic acid market by category is into fiber, film and others. Fiber is anticipated to have the largest share of the market with projected revenues of USD 8.6 billion in the year 2024. Among plastics, the need of Gausberg Importance is biodegradable polygl which is model for the Strength and Compatibility with Medical Devices. Absorbable surgical sutures have their fibers made from PGA because these stitches maintain consistent tensile strength while closing the wound and degrade at an expectable rate after the healing process is complete. In addition to these uses, they are also used in tissue engineering, and in creating fabrics that are intended to be broken down to support life.
 

The polyglycolic acid market split in application includes medical, packaging, and harvesting of shale gas and others. Medical dominates with a whopping 90.4% market share in 2024. In the polyglycolic acid (PGA) market, the medical application is a primary growth driver due to its superb compatible and biodegradable features. It is found in absorbable sutures, tissue scaffolds, and implants that are bioresorbable. These devices allow tissues to integrate and heal rather than being surgically removed. Its controlled degradation rate and minimal inflammatory response enables its use in advanced medical devices, making it the pinnacle in surgical and therapeutic innovation.
 

The U.S. polyglycolic acid market in 2024 was valued at USD 5.6 Billion in the market. The same year, the U.S. was noted to grapple with rise in PGA demand due to increased medical and oil and gas industry opportunities. The broad ranging healthcare system of the country deploys the use of this polymer in absorbable sutures, tissue scaffolds, and bioresorbable implants which are required to be strong yet biodegradable. Furthermore, in the U.S., PGA is used in downhole tools and as diverting agents in hydraulic fracturing to decrease environmental impact during the extraction process.

North America’s polyglycolic acid market benefits from the solid R&D infrastructure resident especially in the U.S. and Canada for medical and industrial innovations. More companies from North America are moving toward utilizing more eco-friendly materials and the PGA is viewed as a significant constituent for green applications, not only in packaging but in biomedical engineering too. The North America PGA market is expected to grow with increase in marketing campaigns to popularize the environment friendly materials, and as legislation that facilitates these activities becomes more widespread throughout the area.

Polyglycolic Acid Market Share

BMG Incorporated is an innovative company that specializes in producing biodegradable medical devices and materials. Some of the company’s medical products like reservable sutures are made of polyglycolic acid (PGA) because it is biocompatible and absorbed by the body.
 

Corbion sells sustainably sourced biochemicals and materials, and polymers like Polyglycolic acid (PGA) as well. The company employs polymer chemistry for the utilization of PGA in the manufacture of biodegradable plastics and for medical application, where, because of his applicability, it is used in medical devices and sutures.
 

Also, DuPont is a science and technology company that operates in different markets which include advanced materials and biopolymers. Moreover, DuPont has the capability of using PGA for more environmentally friendly medical and packaging products.
 

Ethicon has carved a name for itself and has a long history in the realm of surgical products with a particular niche in sutures. Evonik is one of the top players in specialty chemicals and polymers and it fabricates many sophisticated materials. Evonik also produces polyglycolic acid (PGA) and its copolymers that have great importance for the manufacture of sutures and other biodegradable medical devices due to their excellent biocompatibility and degradation. Ethicon’s range of resorbable sutures is made of polyglycolic acid that have sufficient tensile strength to hold the tissue together during the healing process, and subsequently dissolve in the body, thus eliminating the need for any surgical intervention for removal.
 

Polyglycolic Acid Market Companies

Major players operating in the polyglycolic acid industry are: 

• BMG Incorporated
• Corbion
• DuPont
• Ethicon
• Evonik
• Huizhou Foryou Medical Devices
• Kureha
• Shenzhen Polymtek Biomaterial
• Teleflex
• Others
   

Polyglycolic Acid Industry News

• In October 2021, the REFUCOAT project funded by the European Union successfully developed a new set of techniques to manufacture bioplastics from renewable sources to replace conventional oil-based polymer packaging materials. These bioplastics were subsequently utilized to manufacture organic packaging systems for chicken, breadcrumbs, and crispy snacks.
   
• In July 2021, global major Sinopec held an opening ceremony for phase 1 of its annual 500,000 tons PGA plant. This material is referred to as green, environmentally friendly, recyclable, and useful to the ecosystem. Some researchers predict that PGA can be broken down into a few harmless materials like carbon dioxide and water over time. It is believed that plastic can be replaced with an ideal as it is biodegradable and biocompatible. It can be used in the medical field, packaging, disposables and many other assistive technologies.
   

The polyglycolic acid market research report includes in-depth coverage of the industry, with estimates & forecast in terms of revenue (USD Billion) & volume (Kilo Tons) from 2021 to 2034, for the following segments:

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Market, By Form

• Fiber
• Film
• Others (plate, rod)

Market, By Application

• Medical
• Packaging
• Shale gas extraction
• Others (civil engineering, filter)

The above information is provided for the following regions and countries:

• North America
  • U.S.
  • Canada
• Europe
  • UK
  • Germany
  • France
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Russia
• Asia Pacific
  • China
  • India
  • Japan
  • South Korea
  • Australia 
• Latin America
  • Brazil
  • Mexico
• MEA
  • UAE
  • Saudi Arabia
  • South Africa