Plant based Vaccine Market Report

Global Plant Based Vaccine Market Size

The global plant based vaccines market size was valued at USD 1.81 billion in 2024 and is estimated to reach USD 5.24 billion by 2033 from USD 2.04 billion in 2025, registering a CAGR of 12.88% from 2025 to 2033.

MARKET DRIVERS

Plant-based vaccines offer a potential alternative to conventional vaccine production methods that depend on animal cells or organisms. They can help address safety concerns related to vaccines derived from animals, such as the danger of contamination and the presence of animal pathogens. In addition, individuals and organisations prioritising animal welfare may consider plant-based vaccines more ethical.

Regulatory bodies such as the FDA and EMA have expressed interest in and support for the investigation of alternative vaccine production methods, including plant-based approaches. As technology progresses and demonstrates safety and efficacy, regulatory processes for authorising plant-based vaccines may become more defined and streamlined, thereby promoting additional market expansion.

Plant-based vaccine production may be less expensive than traditional approaches as plants are relatively inexpensive to grow and can be ramped up fast, enabling low-cost, large-scale vaccine production. This cost advantage is especially advantageous for developing countries or places with limited resources.

Plant-based vaccine production allows for shorter response times in developing and manufacturing of vaccines for emerging illnesses. Compared to traditional approaches, which may include complex and time-consuming processes, the technology allows for the creation of vaccinations faster.

MARKET RESTRAINTS

Environmental and pollution concerns are projected to slow the expansion of the global plant-based vaccines market in the coming years. Biosafety concerns are raised by the possibility of pollen contamination of non-transgenic crops used in regular agricultural production by field crop-based Plant Molecular Farming (PMF) platforms like maise or rice. The use of food crops in the production of recombinant pharmaceutical compounds has been banned by the US FDA policy.

REPORT COVERAGE

SEGMENTAL ANALYSIS

By Source Insights

Based on the source, the tobacco plant segment held the largest share of the market in 2024 and it is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Due to its quick growth and high volume of production, the tobacco plant has been the go-to option as a host plant for generating recombinant antibodies since 1988. Tobacco continues to be the most widely utilised plant for the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, but other plants like maize, wheat, tomato, mustard, banana, and soybean have also been used. Additionally, tobacco plants are a cost-effective option for biologic production because of their high propensity to take foreign proteins and low care needs.

By Vaccine Type Insights

Based on vaccine type, the viral vaccines segment is anticipated to account for a substantial share of the global market during the forecast period. The growing need for effective preventive measures against viral infections, including emerging viruses and pandemic threats majorly drives the growth of the viral vaccines segment in the global market.

The bacterial vaccines segment is expected to register a healthy CAGR in the coming years. The growing awareness about the importance of immunization against bacterial infections and the efforts to combat antibiotic resistance propels the growth of the bacterial vaccines segment in the worldwide market.

By Application Insights

Based on application, the influenza segment held the largest market share in 2024. However, the COVID-19 segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of around 14% in the market during the forecast period. Several market players are working towards the development of plant-based vaccines to protect people against the influenza virus. For example, Medicago developed a plant-based vaccine called Quadrivalent Influenza Vaccine (QIV), which proved to provide substantial protection against respiratory illness and influenza-like illness caused by influenza viruses in adults. QVLP vaccine was well tolerated, and no major safety signal arose in participants who received the QVLP vaccine across the two studies in adults and older adults, as found in a 2020 clinical trial.

REGIONAL ANALYSIS

North America will continue to hold the maximum share in the global plant-based vaccines market in the upcoming years. This is due to the rising number of product launches in the region. A good number of private and government research organisations working on R&D to make plant-based vaccines are expected to drive market growth over the forecast period. Moreover, the region's high prevalence of influenza drives the vaccine development demand. The presence and availability of high-end technologies in countries like the US and Canada support the growth of the market.

The market in Europe is also expected to grow due to the rising cases emphasis on better R&D and healthcare services along with growing chronic conditions. The rising concerns of the EU toward eradicating animal cruelty in vaccine testing and production also leads to growth in the countries like the UK, Italy. France, etc.

KEY MARKET PLAYERS

ICON Genetics GmbH, Lumen Bioscience, Inc., Creative Biolabs, Inc., Medicago Inc., Leaf Expression Systems Ltd., Kentucky BioProcessing, Inc., Fraunhofer Center for Manufacturing Innovation, British American Tobacco Plc., ZYUS Life Sciences Inc., iBio, EEA Consulting Engineers, PlantForm Corporation, Baiya Phytopharm, Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) and Protalix Biotherapeutics are some of the notable players in the global plant-based vaccines market.

RECENT HAPPENINGS IN THE MARKET

• In September 2022, Baiya Phytopharm, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company in Thailand, is using 3M Health Care’s 3M-052 adjuvant in phase 1 clinical trials for a COVID-19 vaccine that uses plants to make the vaccine. This first-in-human clinical trial of Baiya’s SARS-CoV-2 Vax 2 began in March 2022 and enrolled healthy adults aged 18 to 64 to receive the vaccine via two injections 21 days apart. Preliminary results show the vaccine is safe for healthy adults with the potential to induce higher immune responses than the vaccine alone.
• In February 2022, The Canadian government approved the use of Covifenz, the world’s first plant-based COVID-19 vaccine, jointly developed by Medicago, Inc. and GlaxoSmithKline Plc. It is the first authorised coronavirus jab developed by a Canadian-based firm and the first to use a plant-based protein technology. As of now, the vaccine has been cleared for use for people aged 18 to 64.
• In February 2023, Plant-based Covid-19 vaccine developer Medicago shut down this week with little fanfare. And its two subsidiaries, Medicago R&D and Medicago USA are also closing their doors, according to a company news release. The shutdown comes just a little over three months after Medicago laid off 62 employees at its manufacturing facility in North Carolina.

MARKET SEGMENTATION

This research report on global plant-based vaccine market has been segmented and sub-segmented based on the following categories.

By Source

• Tobacco plant
• Maize
• Potato
• Others

By Vaccine Type

• Bacterial Vaccines
• Viral Vaccines
• Parasite Vaccines
• Others

By Application

• Influenza
• Covid-19
• Zika Virus
• Ebola Virus
• Poultry Disease
• Others​​​​​​.

By Region

• North America
• Europe
• Asia-Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East & Africa