Value of CL market analysed

This is according to newly released Association of Contact Lens Manufacturers (ACLM) statistics published last week.
The ACLM represents 98 per cent of the suppliers of lenses worn in Britain, and last year the market was made up of the sale of over 352 million lenses.
In terms of market value representation, daily disposables accounted for 52 per cent, soft frequent replacement lenses 30 per cent, silicone hydrogels 6 per cent, soft traditional lenses 6 per cent and rigid lenses 6 per cent.
In all, 30 per cent of UK contact lens wearers use daily disposable lenses, 45 per cent wear frequent replacement lenses, while 3 per cent, 10 per cent and 13 per cent use silicone hydrogels, traditional hydrogels and rigid lenses respectively.
'This data indicates that the number of contact lens wearers in the UK is 3.05 million,' said an ACLM spokesman. 'This number represents 6.2 per cent of UK adults and is an increase of 10 per cent since the start of the ACLM market growth initiative which began in 2001.'
Forcare systems, the market fell from £31.4m in 2002 to £29.7m in 2003, a 5 per cent fall.
See feature Ðpage 26