Current situation of supply and demand of masks in China

      Since the outbreak of COVID-19, the supply and demand of masks in China has become a serious problem, and it has become a common phenomenon that masks are hard to find. In general, the major reasons for the severe shortage of mask supply in the short term are the shortage of stock behind the rapid increase in demand, the lack of operation due to the outbreak and the Spring Festival holiday, and the contradiction between the emergency demand and the supply lag under the mask standard.

           However, with the stable supply of raw materials, the further increase of provincial production rate, and the implementation of multiple measures such as capacity expansion and production line innovation encouraged by national policies, the supply and demand of masks will gradually balance in the future. The content of this issue is divided into three parts, one is mask classification and main technical indicators, the second is mask production and marketing chain analysis, the third is domestic mask supply and demand risk analysis and prospect. 

         A mask is a hygiene product, which is worn on the nose and mouth to filter the air entering the nose and mouth so as to prevent harmful gases, odors and droplets from entering the nose and mouth of the wearer. It is made of non-woven fabric. It is generally divided into three categories: civil masks, medical masks and industrial dust-proof masks. There are many differences among them in their application scenarios, main features, implementation standards and manufacturing processes. At present, the domestic production of masks is mainly medical masks, with both the production capacity and the output accounting for more than 50%.

       At present, medical masks are managed as medical devices in China. Medical masks are generally made of three layers of non-woven fabric, the outer layer of which is spunbonded non-woven fabric. It is waterproof and adopts droplet prevention design to block fluids such as body fluids and blood. The middle layer is melt-blown non-woven fabric, and the electret treated polypropylene melt-blown non-woven fabric is used as the filter core. The inner layer mainly uses ES non-woven fabric, which plays a hygroscopic role.