Government agency Jamaica Promotions Corporation (Jampro), reckons that Jamaica could benefit from expected growth of $700 million in global demand for castor beans and oil, led by a shift in consumer demand for natural hair care ingredients.

In a stakeholder consultation hosted by Jampro earlier this year, the agency noted that it has undertaken work to develop and analyse the castor oil value chain while providing recommendations for the commercialisation of castor products with focus on the export market in an effort to exploit what is now termed as the ‘Natural Hair Movement’.

The report and recommendations were presented at a Stakeholders Forum on Tuesday under the theme “Developing the Castor Opportunity”, and follows a timeline of three years, beginning with the consolidation and standardisation of the Jamaican Black Castor Oil (JBCO) industry, exploration of the domestic market potential for castor cake fertiliser, and the potential for entry into the Commercial Grade Castor Oil (CGCO) market for cosmetics and bio-plastics.

According to Jampro, “Consumer demand for JBCO-related products is expected to grow as the ‘Natural Hair Movement’ becomes increasingly considered to be the new normal in the global hair care industry…Similar to JBCO, CGCO is positioned to experience significant market growth over the next decade.”

CGCO is one of the standard and most common grades of castor oil used in the manufacture of textile chemicals, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and as a starting raw material for other grades of castor oil derivatives.

The report stated that hair care sales among black American consumers amounted to $2.7 billion in 2015, and is anticipated to rise to $3.4 billion by 2020 led by population growth, rising interest in natural hair, and new product innovations.

“The most significant strength of the Jamaican castor industry is the distinctive competitive advantage and brand awareness of JBCO. Due to the success of leading manufacturers and distributors of JBCO over the last decade, the product’s brand and quality reputation is very strong throughout North America and Europe,” Jampro stated.

It added that significant opportunities await Jamaica to capitalise on established overseas demand for JBCO products through improved branding, domestic coordination and entry into new geographic and demographic markets.

However, Jampro listed weak internal market linkages, lack of product quality control and quality testing instruments, insufficient access to capital and investment, information asymmetry between overseas distributors and Jamaican producers, and the lack of mechanisation processing as major constraints for the local castor industry.

Globally, the Afro-Caribbean hair care market is valued at US$684 million ($86.6 billion), and is estimated to rise to approximately US$760 million ($96.2 billion) by 2017. Moreover, Euromonitor International estimated that approximately US$1.1 billion of shampoos, relaxers and hair lotions were sold across South Africa, Nigeria and Cameroon in 2013, and anticipates Africa’s liquid haircare market could grow by about five per cent by 2018 in Nigeria and Cameroon, according to Jampro’s report.

“Rising demand for chemical-free haircare products coupled with changing lifestyle of consumers regarding organic care has also contributed to market growth. North America has dominated the global market for organic hair and skin care products and is expected to have a compound annual rate of 9.8 per cent from 2014 to 2020.

“Moreover, environmental initiatives and industrial protocols intended to restrict greenhouse gas emissions have forced personal care manufacturers to utilise natural ingredients in their products,” the Government agency said.