Cell Culture Media Market

Updated on : Aug 22, 2024

The global cell culture media market in terms of revenue was estimated to be worth $6.2 billion in 2023 and is poised to reach $13.0 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 16.0% from 2023 to 2028. The new research study consists of an industry trend analysis of the market. The new research study consists of industry trends, pricing analysis, patent analysis, conference and webinar materials, key stakeholders, and buying behaviour in the market. Factors such as the growing focus on personalized medicine, increased investment in stem cell research, increasing demand for serum and animal component-free media and increasing demand for monoclonal antibodies and biosimilars are driving the growth of the cell culture media industry.

Attractive Opportunities in the Cell Culture Media Market

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Cell Culture Media Market Dynamics

DRIVER: Increasing demand for serum and animal component-free media

Fetal bovine serum (FBS) is the most widely used and preferred media supplement for cells culture. FBS contains several growth factors and hormones that can help for cell growth, but there are several disadvantages of using FBS such as batch-to-batch variability in serum composition, limited availability, impact on performance and safety of a cell product, potential pathogen transmission and animal welfare considerations. This has driven the shift towards the development and adoption of serum-free cell culture processes.

Some of the advantages of using serum- and animal component-free media includes reduced batch-to-batch variability, precise evaluations of cellular function, increased growth and/or productivity, elimination of potential viral contaminants, simplified purification and downstream processing, consistency in performance. Moreover, serum-free medium is more chemically defined and includes a limited number of traceable constituents, resulting in regulatory benefits and faster time-to-market. Owing to such advantages the demand for serum- and animal component-free media has significantly increased for recombinant proteins and regenerative medicine development. Many companies Thermo Fisher Scientific (US), Merck KGaA (Germany), HiMedia Laboratories (India), STEMCELL Technologies Inc. (Canada) have already ventured into the development of serum-free media. Thus, shift towards the development and adoption of serum- and animal component-free media support the market growth.

RESTRAINT: Expensive cell biology research products

Cell biology involves extensive research on the development of new therapies, such as stem cell and gene therapies. The media, reagents, and other products associated with this research are required to be of high quality in order to obtain accurate results. Owing to the need to maintain high-quality standards and comply with guidelines set up by regulatory authorities, the cost of research in cell biology is high.

Due to budget constraints, various institutes and small-scale companies find it difficult to afford expensive products required for cell biology research. In developing countries, underdeveloped infrastructure facilities and low healthcare expenditure restrict the use of advanced equipment and consumables. The use of advanced media and kits is more expensive as compared to conventional ones. Specific media offer significant benefits like the simplification of expansion processes, reduced working times, and high throughput. However, the high cost of these media is restraining their adoption.

OPPORTUNITY: Increasing incidence of infectious diseases and outbreaks of pandemics

Cell culture has a wide range of applications in providing diagnostic/prognostic information as well as during research related to HIV/AIDS, cancer, and various infectious diseases. Several factors, such as the growth in the population, climate change, and increasing contact between humans and animals, have increased the threat of new virus outbreaks. Cancer, which has become the leading cause of death globally, accounted for 9.96 million deaths in 2020. According to GLOBOCAN, the number of cancer cases will rise to approximately 30 million by 2040. The growth in the prevalence of this disease has resulted in a need to conduct extensive research for diagnosis and treatment. This in turn offers growth opportunities for cell culture technologies and cell culture media products.

Influenza pandemics are unpredictable and recurring events that pose a significant economic and social burden. According to the CDC, from October 1, 2022, through April 30, 2023, there have been 27-54 million flu illnesses, 12-26 million flu medical visits, 3,00,000-6,50,000 flu hospitalizations, and 19,000-58,000 flu deaths. According to the WHO, in 2021, there were an estimated 128 000 measles deaths globally, mostly among unvaccinated or under vaccinated children under the age of 5 years. In 2021, about 81% of the world's children received one dose of measles vaccine by their first birthday through routine health services – the lowest since 2008. The increasing incidence of such communicable diseases and the growing risk of pandemics are the major factors driving the demand for diagnostics across the globe. This, in turn, is expected to offer potential growth opportunities for players operating in the cell culture media market during the forecast period.

CHALLENGE: Survival of small players and new entrants

The survival of small players and new entrants in the cell culture media industry is a significant challenge. Established players such as Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (US), Lonza Group AG (Switzerland), Sartorius AG (Germany), Merck KGaA (Germany), and Danaher Corporation (US) account for a major share of the market. These players have a strong brand recognition and robust product portfolio. It is difficult for small players and new entrants to compete in this market, considering the strong presence of major players. Also, as established players that have large R&D budgets it is difficult for small players to sustain their operations and compete with established players as large investments are required for the R&D and launch of innovative products.

On the basis of type, the cell culture media market is segmented into serum-free media, classical media & salts, stem cell culture media, specialty media, chemically defined media, and other cell culture media. The serum-free media segment accounted for the largest share of the cell culture media industry in 2022. This can be attributed to the benefits of serum-free media over other different types of media, such as less risk of contamination in cell culture, and high growth & productivity.

On the basis of application, the cell culture media market is segmented into drug discovery & development, tissue engineering & regenerative medicine, biopharmaceutical production, diagnostics, and other applications. During the forecast period the biopharmaceutical production segment of the cell culture media industry will grow the highest. Factors responsible for the growth of this segment includes high R&D investments and expansion of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

On the basis of end user, the cell culture media market is segmented into pharmaceutical & biotechnology companies, hospitals & diagnostic laboratories, research & academic institutes, and other end users which includes cell banks, CDMOs, and CROs. In 2022, the pharmaceutical & biotechnology companies segment accounted for the largest share and highest growth rate of the cell culture media industry during the forecast period.

On the basis of region, global cell culture media market has been segmented into North America, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, and the Middle East and Africa. Asia Pacific region of the cell culture media industry is expected to register the highest growth during the forecast period due to an increase in populations and a rise in the burden of diseases.

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Key players in the cell culture media market are Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (US), Merck KGaA (Germany), Danaher Corporation (US), Sartorius AG (Germany), Corning Incorporated (US), FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific, Inc. (Japan), Lonza Group (Switzerland), Becton, Dickinson and Company (US), Miltenyi Biotec (Germany), HiMedia Laboratories Pvt. Ltd. (India), STEMCELL Technologies Inc. (Canada), Biologos LLC (US),

Scope of the Cell Culture Media Industry

This report categorizes the cell culture media market to forecast revenue and analyze trends in each of the following submarkets:

By Type

• Serum-free Media
  • CHO Media
  • HEK 293 Media
  • BHK Media
  • VERO Cell Media
  • Insect Cell Media
  • Serum-free Stem Cell Media
  • Immune cell Media
  • Other Serum-free Media
• Classical Media & Salts
• Stem Cell Culture Media
• Specialty Media
• Chemically defined Media
• Other Cell Culture Media

By Application

• Biopharmaceutical Production
  • Monoclonal antibodies
  • Vaccines production
  • Other therapeutic proteins
• Diagnostics
• Drug Screening & Development
• Tissue Engineering & Regenerative Medicine
  • Cell and gene therapy
  • Other tissue engineering & regenerative medicine applications
• Other Applications

By End user

• Pharmaceutical & Biotechnology Companies
• Hospitals & Diagnostic Laboratories
• Research & Academic Institutes
• Other End Users

By Region

• North America
  • US
  • Canada
• Europe
  • Germany
  • UK
  • France
  • Italy
  • Spain
  • Rest of Europe (RoE)
• Asia Pacific (APAC)
  • China
  • Japan
  • India
  • South Korea
  • Rest of Asia Pacific (RoAPAC)
• Latin America (LATAM)
  • Brazil
  • Mexico
  • RoLATAM
• Middle East and Africa (MEA)

Recent Developments of Cell Culture Media Industry

• In June 2023, Thermo fisher launched Tumoroid Culture Medium to accelerate development of novel cancer therapies.
• In April 2023, FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific launched BalanCD CHO Media Platform Portfolio for Bioprocessing.
• In March 2022, FUJIFILM Irvine Scientific acquired Shenandoah Biotechnology. The deal would help the company to provide customers with a single point of access for their life science research, discovery, and cell and gene therapy needs.
• In January 2022, Cytiva and Nucleus Biologics LLC collaborated to enhance custom cell media development for cell and gene therapies.

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