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Few types of substances are as varied as wax. Waxes can be naturally occurring or manmade, created from petroleum or soy. Aside from the obvious use of wax in candles, wax can be and is used for anything from a biologist’s microscope slides (histology) to the water-repelling shine on a surfer’s board (surf wax). While they all share certain qualities, such as their insolubility in water, the sheer variety of different types of wax makes it one of the most versatile and useful substances in man’s arsenal.

These are exciting times for the wax industry. According to a study by Inkwood Research, the global industrial wax market looks likely to increase by almost fifty percent by 2024, growing from 2016’s $8008 million to $11,499.82 million, with new technologies playing an important role in stabilising the market and balancing prices. More than 69 percent of the global wax market is in fossil-based waxes, as used in candle-making, packaging and polishes and coatings. Particularly in the Asia-Pacific regions, reduced supply of paraffin waxes has led to increased demand for synthetic and bio-based waxes.

With the global wax industry proving to be as unpredictable and malleable as wax itself, it’s interesting to keep an eye on what it is that’s driving these changes. Supply is becoming increasingly limited in Europe and North America, in large part due to the closure of some Group I plants as well as the economic recession having caused lower demand in turn leading to lower operating rates in those that remain open. Rushing to fill the void are synthetic and vegetable waxes, which are the fastest-growing performers in the sector.

The cosmetics industry is looking at massive growth in the next few years. In a world increasingly concerned with beauty and self-image, the global market for cosmetics is set to reach $429.8 billion by 2022, with a compound annual growth rate of 4.3 percent, according to Allied Market Research.

Like all businesses, the global wax industry is a slave to the laws of supply and demand, and new challenges in this area await the market in the coming years, according to Kline’s Global Wax Industry: Market Analysis And Opportunities report. While the industry itself currently remains healthy, with demand for wax achieving a compound annual growth rate of 1.5 percent projected until 2019, it seems set to be facing problems in terms of supply, with the projected growth for the same period languishing at 0.4 percent.

Wax is one of those substances we often take for granted. It’s been used for hundreds of years and for at least as many different applications. From the archaic, such as its use as a seal for official documents, to the cutting edge of medical technology where it is used for suspending samples for microscopic examination or in the creation of pharmaceutical oils and lotions, wax is a remarkably versatile material.

The global wax industry is facing unprecedented changes. Petroleum waxes, until recently the dominant element in the worldwide wax market, are beginning to be super-ceded by synthetic and vegetable waxes. The ability of wax manufacturers and providers to innovate and adapt to the needs and foibles of an ever-shifting marketplace is now of more importance than ever before.

Whether naturally occurring or made by human hand, wax is one of the most versatile materials in the world, having been used for everything from sealing documents to providing light. At Poth Hille, we understand this only too well, having manufactured and sold an enormous range of different waxes since 1875. We have provided waxes for industrial purposes, for candle makers and for the pharmaceutical sector, and we pride ourselves on the diversity of our products.

The quest to eradicate disease is a noble and incredibly long-running one, and histology is one of the key weapons in medicine's armoury, for without histology and its cousin histopathology, there can be little or no accurate diagnosis or knowledge of diseased tissue....