From $24.6 billion in 2019, the global commercial refrigeration equipment market value is predicted to surge to $33.9 billion by 2030. According to the estimates of the market research company, PS Intelligence, the market will exhibit a CAGR of 3.0% from 2020 to 2030 (forecast period). The major factors driving the expansion of the market are the burgeoning requirement for ready-to-eat food items and rapidly expanding organized food retail sector across the globe.

With their increasing disposable income, the middle-class populace, particularly in the Eastern world, is increasingly preferring ready-to-eat food products. Moreover, the rising influence of the Western lifestyle is also positively impacting the sales of ready-to-eat foods. Such rapid changes in the food consumption and dietary habits of people are causing a sharp rise in the number of hypermarkets, food and restaurant chains, and supermarkets around the world. Furthermore, the changing food consumption habits of people are also encouraging unorganized restaurants and small grocery stores to upgrade their infrastructure by buying large refrigeration systems.

Besides, the booming organized food retail sector, which includes hypermarkets, supermarkets, and organized restaurant chains, in several countries is also fueling the expansion of the commercial refrigeration equipment market. The surge in the industry is fast, especially in Brazil, India, and China, on account of the rapid urbanization in these countries. For example, in China, the urban population is predicted to rise from 782 million in 2016 to nearly 1.4 billion by 2025. Likewise, in India, the urban population is predicted to surge from 438 million in 2016 to nearly 1.4 billion by the end of 2023.

This would subsequently push up the requirement for refrigeration equipment in hypermarkets, mid-sized grocery stores, tier 1 and tier 2 restaurants, and food processing facilities. Depending on product, the commercial refrigeration equipment market is divided into beverage refrigeration equipment, walk-in coolers, display showcases, ice merchandisers and ice vending equipment, and others, such as liquid chillers, cryogenic equipment, and vending machines. Out of these, the beverage refrigeration equipment category is predicted to demonstrate the highest growth rate in the coming years.

This is ascribed to the growing consumption of beverages. Additionally, the growing demand for checking corrosion and improving the aesthetics is also fueling the progress of the category. Geographically, the commercial refrigeration equipment market is predicted to exhibit the fastest growth in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region throughout the forecast period. This is ascribed to the mushrooming population and surging purchasing power of people in the region. As compared to other regions, the existence of refrigeration equipment manufacturers has grown significantly more in APAC in recent years, owing to the soaring number of quick-service restaurants and food chains in the region.

Thus, the sales of commercial refrigeration equipment will surge sharply all over the world in the years to come, mainly because of the growing consumption of ready-to-eat food products and surging number of food chains, hypermarkets, supermarkets, and restaurants in several countries.