Crushed, ground and bagged: North American GCC

Ground calcium carbonate (GCC) is one of the most widely used industrial minerals, due to characteristics such as wide availability, low cost, good (white) colour, low oil absorption and a wide range of particles sizes. It has become an increasingly important functional additive in product formulations as processing techniques have improved its quality. The North American industry is driven by the construction and automotive markets it serves with leading producers investing to produce finer particle sizes to realise higher margins in a trading environment that has stymied price increases. Production economics have driven industry consolidation and enabled major producers to achieve margin growth through economies of scale, and provide capital for investment. Despite the increasing focus on high-end products, commodity lines continue to underpin the business plans of many producers.