Labels: The State of the Industry

A major component of the European label market is the growth in eastern Europe, which grew overall by 1.5 percent in 2011 over prior year; and while pressure-sensitive labels grew at around 1.3 percent, they face strong competition from sleeving—particularly heat shrink. In-mold labels grew—primarily in IML-IM formats—by 3 percent. All label formats grew strongly in film label substrates, and key markets were food, beverages, and pharmaceuticals.