Analysis of Opportunities in the Australian Takeaway and Disposable Tableware Market – A Hotbed for Chinese Suppliers to Go Global

The takeout market

As a core market for the upgrading of catering consumption in the Southern Hemisphere, Australia's food delivery industry is experiencing rapid expansion. According to Morgan Stanley data, the scale of online food delivery orders in Australia is projected to surge from AUD 1.5 billion in 2017 to AUD 4.2 billion by 2025, increasing its share of the overall food delivery market from 10% to 23%. In the past year, food delivery consumption in Australia increased by 7.8% year-on-year. Restaurants connected to food delivery platforms have an average annual turnover AU$100,000 higher than those that are not. Victoria, New South Wales, and Queensland are the core demand areas, with daily food delivery orders in areas such as southwest Melbourne and western Sydney consistently exceeding 200 orders.

The booming food delivery market has directly driven demand for packaging and Sugarcane bagasse tableware. Australian food service businesses generally prioritize the delivery experience, with over 80% of takeaway orders requiring individual packaging and disposable bagasse tableware. The rise of niche categories such as coffee delivery (accounting for 35%) and fresh food delivery (annual growth of 22%), coupled with consumers' pursuit of convenience and brand experience, is also pushing takeaway packaging towards personalization, aesthetic appeal, and multi-functionality. This demand dividend is opening up vast market opportunities for Chinese export companies.

The disposable tableware market

in Australia is experiencing profound structural growth, with its market size reaching a staggering $10.4 billion by 2025, representing a CAGR of 10.2%, making it the fastest-growing segment in the food service supply chain. This growth is not simply a matter of scale expansion, but rather a transformation towards higher quality and environmental friendliness driven by changing consumer habits, health needs, and policy guidance. The core drivers are primarily the scaling up of the food service industry and the increasing health awareness among consumers. The continued penetration of the food delivery industry and the accelerated expansion of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) catering have become the core engines of market growth. Fast-food chains, coffee chains, and other QSRs(Quality, Service, and Reliability) businesses, with their efficient service and extensive reach, contribute over 60% of tableware consumption, while the improved on-demand delivery network further unlocks demand from diverse scenarios such as home, office, and outdoor use.

Policy-driven material innovation has become a key driver of market structural adjustment. Many parts of Australia have issued bans and restrictions on plastics, strictly limiting the production and use of traditional non-degradable plastic tableware and strongly guiding the transformation of materials towards biodegradable, recyclable, and plant-based environmentally friendly options. Currently, environmentally friendly Sugarcane tableware has captured the mainstream market share, with biodegradable materials such as corn starch, bagasse, and bamboo pulp becoming key areas of focus for brands, and policy benefits continuing to be released. Overall, the Australian disposable tableware market is completing a transformation from "quantity growth" to "dual upgrades in quality and structure," driven by three core forces: penetration into the takeaway market, rising health demands, and environmental policies

Import Dependency and China's Supply Position

The Australian disposable tableware market is characterized by its heavy reliance on imports. Domestic production capacity is limited by technology, cost, and environmental standards, resulting in a supply capacity that relies on imports for over 85% of market demand. China, leveraging its complete industry chain advantages, has established an absolute core supply position, becoming an indispensable pillar of the Australian supply chain. Industry data from 2024 shows that China accounted for a staggering 72% of Australia's imports of plastic and alternative disposable tableware, far exceeding other major suppliers such as New Zealand (9%). Chinese suppliers' market dominance is even more pronounced, with their import share soaring to 83%, virtually monopolizing the core supply of mid-to-high-end environmentally friendly tableware.

The reason why China can form an irreplaceable supply advantage in the Australian market stems from the precise matching of comprehensive competitiveness across the entire chain: On the R&D side, Chinese companies closely follow the direction of Australian environmental protection policies, continuously iterate biodegradable material technologies, and launch suitable products such as plant-based and biodegradable plastics that meet local composting standards and food safety regulations; on the production side, relying on mature light industrial clusters and large-scale production capabilities, they achieve efficient mass production of environmentally friendly tableware, which can not only meet the bulk purchasing needs of large customers such as QSRs, but also flexibly respond to customized orders for niche scenarios.

While there are no official statistics on disposable tableware separately, the market size can be clearly seen by combining data on specific categories: In 2024, China's exports of bamboo and wood tableware to Australia amounted to approximately US$320 million, plant fiber tableware to approximately US$280 million, and starch-based tableware to approximately US$150 million. The three core environmentally friendly categories combined exceeded US$750 million, representing a year-on-year increase of 18.6%. If categories such as paper tableware are included, the overall export scale is expected to reach US$1.2-1.5 billion, and is still maintaining an annual growth rate of 15%-20%.

Key export production areas and industrial advantages

China's exports of disposable tableware to Australia have formed a product category matrix that is "environmentally friendly and segmented by application scenarios," precisely matching the needs of Australian takeaway and catering businesses.

Plant fiber products: sugarcane pulp lunch boxes and paper pulp molded bowls account for the largest share. After the sugarcane pulp tableware of the Chinese company Sincere Eco Tech passed the Australian environmental certification, it has entered more than 200 chain restaurants in the local area.

Exhibition Strength

The impressive figures from the 2025 exhibition attest to its industry appeal: attracting 49,000 global professional visitors, including not only key supply chain managers from food delivery platforms but also omnichannel sourcing power from FMCG and catering brands, high-end restaurant groups, and distributors. Exhibiting not only allows direct access to key buyers in the Australian market, efficiently expanding cooperation channels, but also provides in-depth insights into local policy directions, consumer demands, and industry trends, offering firsthand references for product iteration and market strategy optimization.

The continued growth of Australia's takeaway market and the strict enforcement of the "plastic ban" are creating a multi-billion dollar blue ocean market for environmentally friendly disposable tableware. Chinese companies, with their material innovation, production capacity advantages, and the cluster effect of production areas, have become the core suppliers in the Australian market.