Australia Xanthan Gum Market Size, Share, Trends and Forecast by Application and Region, 2026-2034

Australia Xanthan Gum Market Overview:

The Australia xanthan gum market size reached USD 13.86 Million in 2025. The market is projected to reach USD 23.11 Million by 2034, exhibiting a growth rate (CAGR) of 5.85% during 2026-2034. The market is driven by expanding demand from gluten-free and clean-label food products, growing applications in oil and gas drilling operations, and increasing adoption in pharmaceutical and personal care industries. Additionally, the rising consumer preference for natural food additives and the ongoing development of Australia's offshore petroleum sector are bolstering the Australia xanthan gum market share.

Australia Xanthan Gum Market Trends:

Expanding Demand from Gluten-Free and Clean-Label Food Products

The Australian food and beverage industry is experiencing a significant transformation driven by heightened consumer awareness of dietary health and food ingredient transparency. Xanthan gum has emerged as an essential ingredient in gluten-free product formulations, where it provides the structural support and texture typically delivered by gluten proteins. The compound's ability to create viscosity and maintain product stability makes it particularly valuable in bakery applications, sauces, dressings, and dairy alternatives. Australian consumers are increasingly seeking products with recognizable, natural ingredients, aligning with the global clean-label movement that prioritizes minimally processed additives. Food manufacturers are responding by reformulating products to replace synthetic stabilizers and thickeners with natural alternatives like xanthan gum. The ingredient's plant-based origin through microbial fermentation resonates with the growing vegan and vegetarian consumer segments. Australia's gluten-free bakery market is experiencing rapid growth, with bakery products dominating the gluten-free foods and beverages market. In March 2025, The Hallway partnered with Sydney-based Wholegreen Bakery to launch the Cardboard Cake, a coeliac-approved bakery product featuring butterscotch, coffee, cocoa powder, pastry, caramel, and brown rice flour, demonstrating the innovative use of alternative ingredients like xanthan gum in gluten-free formulations to maintain desired texture and stability. This trend is further supported by retail expansion, with major supermarket chains dedicating increased shelf space to gluten-free and clean-label products, thereby improving accessibility and driving the Australia xanthan gum market growth through consistent demand from food manufacturers seeking reliable natural texturizing solutions.

Growing Applications in Oil and Gas Drilling Operations

Australia's petroleum industry represents a substantial driver for industrial-grade xanthan gum consumption, particularly within the context of offshore drilling operations that dominate the nation's energy production landscape. Xanthan gum serves critical functions in water-based drilling fluids, where its unique rheological properties enable effective viscosity control across varying temperatures, pressures, and salinity conditions encountered in deep-water and high-temperature drilling environments. The compound's pseudoplastic behavior allows drilling fluids to maintain low viscosity during pumping while developing high viscosity at rest, which facilitates efficient cuttings transport and suspension. This characteristic proves especially valuable in Australia's offshore petroleum basins, where complex geological formations require sophisticated drilling fluid formulations to maintain borehole stability and prevent formation damage. The ongoing development of mature fields and exploration of new reserves in regions such as the North West Shelf, Gippsland Basin, and Browse Basin sustains demand for specialized drilling additives. In 2025, Woodside and ExxonMobil announced a USD 350 Million Bass Strait drilling campaign aimed at extending supply in Australia's offshore petroleum sector. With approximately 88% of Australia's petroleum production in 2025 coming from offshore fields primarily in the North West Shelf and Gippsland Basin, the demand for specialized drilling fluids containing xanthan gum as a thickening and stabilizing agent continues to rise to support these extensive drilling operations. The industry's focus on operational efficiency and environmental compliance further reinforces the preference for biodegradable, non-toxic additives like xanthan gum over synthetic alternatives, positioning the ingredient as an indispensable component in Australia's energy sector infrastructure.

Increasing Adoption in Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Industries

The pharmaceutical and personal care sectors in Australia are increasingly incorporating xanthan gum into product formulations, driven by the ingredient's biocompatibility, biodegradability, and functional versatility. In pharmaceutical applications, xanthan gum functions as an excipient in controlled-release drug delivery systems, oral suspensions, and topical formulations, where it provides consistent viscosity, enhances stability, and improves patient compliance through better mouthfeel and ease of administration. The compound's ability to form stable gels and maintain viscosity across varying pH levels makes it particularly suitable for acid-resistant formulations and sustained-release tablets. Australian pharmaceutical manufacturers are leveraging xanthan gum's natural origin to align with regulatory preferences for Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) ingredients and consumer demand for products containing recognizable, plant-derived components. In the personal care industry, xanthan gum is utilized in lotions, creams, shampoos, and cosmetic formulations as a thickening agent, emulsion stabilizer, and texture modifier. The ingredient's compatibility with both natural and synthetic components enables formulators to create products that meet clean beauty standards while maintaining desired performance characteristics. In September 2025, Jungbunzlauer invested USD 200 million to establish Canada's first xanthan gum manufacturing facility in Port Colborne, Ontario, with support from a USD 4.8 million Invest Ontario grant, creating 50 new jobs and enhancing North American production capacity. This significant investment demonstrates the growing global demand for pharmaceutical and cosmetics-grade xanthan gum, which serves Australian and Asia-Pacific markets where the pharmaceutical sector increasingly utilizes xanthan gum in controlled-release drug formulations and personal care products for texture and consistency enhancement. The trend toward multifunctional, sustainable ingredients in both sectors positions xanthan gum as a key component in product innovation strategies targeting health-conscious and environmentally aware Australian consumers.

Australia Xanthan Gum Market Segmentation:

IMARC Group provides an analysis of the key trends in each segment of the market, along with forecasts at the country and regional levels for 2026-2034. Our report has categorized the market based on application.

Application Insights:

• Oil and Gas
• Food and Beverage
• Pharmaceutical
• Cosmetics
• Others

The report has provided a detailed breakup and analysis of the market based on the application. This includes oil and gas, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, cosmetics, and others.

Regional Insights:

• Australia Capital Territory & New South Wales
• Victoria & Tasmania
• Queensland
• Northern Territory & Southern Australia
• Western Australia

The report has also provided a comprehensive analysis of all the major regional markets, which include Australia Capital Territory & New South Wales, Victoria & Tasmania, Queensland, Northern Territory & Southern Australia, and Western Australia.

Competitive Landscape:

The market research report has also provided a comprehensive analysis of the competitive landscape. Competitive analysis such as market structure, key player positioning, top winning strategies, competitive dashboard, and company evaluation quadrant has been covered in the report. Also, detailed profiles of all major companies have been provided.

Australia Xanthan Gum Market News:

• September 2025: Ingredion introduced new clean-label citrus fiber ingredients that help with viscosity, texture, gelling, and stability in foods. These fibers partly replace conventional additives like modified starch and hydrocolloids, including xanthan gum, representing a shift toward multi-functional natural ingredients in food formulation that impacts the competitive landscape for xanthan gum suppliers serving the Australian food and beverage market.
• June 2025: ADM inaugurated a new research and development center focusing on animal health and microbiome research. This expansion may support future development of antimicrobial or health-related additives, potentially expanding the application scope of xanthan gum and related biopolymers in functional food ingredients and animal nutrition products distributed in Australian and Asia-Pacific markets.
• April 2025: Cargill introduced Biostrong C-Protect, a feed additive combining a postbiotic (XPC™) and a phytogenic that helps poultry resist avian pathogenic E. coli (APEC), improving egg production and reducing mortality under bacterial challenge. While not directly a xanthan gum product, this development by a major xanthan gum manufacturer demonstrates the company's continued innovation in bio-based solutions that complement their hydrocolloid product portfolio for food and agricultural applications in the Australian market.

Australia Xanthan Gum Market Report Coverage:

Key Questions Answered in This Report:

• How has the Australia xanthan gum market performed so far and how will it perform in the coming years?
• What is the breakup of the Australia xanthan gum market on the basis of application?
• What is the breakup of the Australia xanthan gum market on the basis of region?
• What are the various stages in the value chain of the Australia xanthan gum market?
• What are the key driving factors and challenges in the Australia xanthan gum market?
• What is the structure of the Australia xanthan gum market and who are the key players?
• What is the degree of competition in the Australia xanthan gum market?

Key Benefits for Stakeholders:

• IMARC's industry report offers a comprehensive quantitative analysis of various market segments, historical and current market trends, market forecasts, and dynamics of the Australia xanthan gum market from 2020-2034.
• The research report provides the latest information on the market drivers, challenges, and opportunities in the Australia xanthan gum market.
• Porter's five forces analysis assist stakeholders in assessing the impact of new entrants, competitive rivalry, supplier power, buyer power, and the threat of substitution. It helps stakeholders to analyze the level of competition within the Australia xanthan gum industry and its attractiveness.
• Competitive landscape allows stakeholders to understand their competitive environment and provides an insight into the current positions of key players in the market.