FrieslandCampina Ingredients, a global supplier of proteins and prebiotics, has released its fourth annual magazine, detailing five key trends that will drive the food, beverage, and dietary supplement industries in 2024. FrieslandCampina leveraged its consumer research and insights on market trends to showcase top areas for innovation and new product development in adult nutrition.
 
In addition to its own insights, FrieslandCampina’s predictions leverage market research from firms such as FMCG Gurus, Euromonitor, Innova, and Mintel.
 
Securing the Future Sustainably
 
In 2024, the nutrition landscape is shaped by a growing demand for sustainability, with 48% of consumers having made changes to their diets and lifestyles in the last 12 months to behave in a more sustainable manner. Still, 47% of consumers doubt brands’ environmental claims and 49% report that they fear greenwashing.
 
With this in mind, manufacturers need to do everything they can to ensure the sustainability claims they make are backed up by robust, tangible data to ensure long-term business concerns.
 
Nutrition for All
 
Another lead trend will be tailoring products to individual needs, shaped by age, sex, genetics, lifestyle, and more. With 25% of global consumers saying there is a lack of available products that meet their nutritional requirements, there’s huge opportunity for brands to develop tailored nutritional applications that meet consumers’ specific, currently unmet needs.
 
Alternative Proteins Go Global
 
Plant-based is no longer the new kid on the block, and more consumers are seeking out meat and dairy alternatives. But plant-based products must be as good as their counterparts in both taste and nutritional quality. Alternative proteins, like those created through precision fermentation, also have the potential to shake up the market, but there is work to be done to dispel myths and inform consumers, FrieslandCampina reports.
 
Going Beyond Via The Gut
 
Consumers are becoming much more aware of how gut health affects other aspects of wellbeing, as part of a broader awareness of the links between physical and mental health, the company notes. Brands can capitalize on the desire for a holistic mind-and-body approach in gut health products, with trending areas like immune, brain, and muscle health in mind.
 
Aging and Recovering Well
 
In 2024, consumers will take a more proactive approach to health, especially for those in the older population who want to stay healthy for longer, according to FrieslandCampina.
Older consumers are focused on how diets can provide them with the support they need to be active for longer. However, there will always be need for nutritional solutions to recover from illness. Recent innovations in medical nutrition are leveraging muscle-boosting ingredients typically associated with sports and active nutrition to support muscle maintenance in those who need it most.
 
“Our world is an uncertain one right now – but amid the confusion, consumers are increasingly looking to manage something they can control: their nutrition,” said Vicky Davies, global marketing director of performance, active, and medical nutrition. “People are taking positive action on what matters most to them, whether that’s the environmental impact of their food and nutrition choices, getting a better night’s sleep, or setting a new personal best at the gym.
 
“There is so much opportunity to provide consumers with the nutrition they need to live as well as possible,” Davies continued. “Using these latest insights, we can help brands across the globe tap into the trends that will define the nutritional sector in 2024 with the ultimate goal to help people get the most out of life, always.”