As food and drink companies add protein and creatine into more chocolate confectionery snacks, drinks and recovery products, these supplements are moving beyond the gym into wider markets. Only previously consumed in sports training and bodybuilding communities, protein and creatine are becoming mainstream functional nutrition options for consumers looking for convenient ways to feed an active lifestyle.
Protein has already established itself as one of the most readily identifiable ingredients within the world of functional foods. High-protein bars yoghurts cereals, beverage and snacks brands are now widely available on general grocery shelves, rather than exclusively being found in sports-nutrition specialty shops. And, as Innova Market Insights, 69% of India-based consumers are already proactively adding more protein to their diets, and these protein-packed products will be making their way onto more coffee, tea and snack formats.
The trend can also be seen beyond India. Now as FoodNavigator revealed, “identity athletes” were adding sports- and protein-nutrition to their day-to-day lifestyle (e.g. protein-enriched cereals and snack bars). It is just another indication, said Business Monitor International, that “the separation between health and performance food is blurring”.
Creatine is just coming to the same ends, but it’s further out on the spectrum. Creatine, which used to be a tab and a scoop of powder blended with water or a shake, is now showing up in everything from drinks to bars to hydration products. As FoodNavigator, creatine was also a “big focus for recent food-industry innovation, ” with the hope to make it into chewy products and also “blending it with other ingredients like electrolytes, collagen or caffeine.”
The “why” behind the products: convenience. No one may want to prepare a protein shake or count out different supplements after each training session. A snack-only bar, beverage or gum could make supplement application a typical snacking opportunity, and assist consumers in their nutritional routine.
This is evident most in the recovery segment. Ready to drink protein beverages are more and more seen as easier and more convenient alternatives to powder in post work out drink. Hydration products and functional snacks are also directed more at being suitable for a healthy lifestyle and recovery. More formats available provide more choice to consumers.
Consumers also have higher expectations. Simply offering protein is not sufficient to stand out in a saturated marketplace. Improving a product’s taste, texture and ingredient recognizabilitychips that appear to be snack food rather than sports supplementationshould lead to greater success, studies show. Interest in the protein snack category remains high, but there are signs of consumer exhaustion with the rapid growth of bars and heavily processed products.
This is leading brands toward even more recognizable, richer formats. For example, protein cookies, whey beverages, snack chips and functional beverages offer brands the possibility to blend their functional position with middle-of-the-road sensory appeal. Meanwhile, functional-snacking studies reveal that more consumers are looking for a functional product that is not perceived as overly healthy or even medicinal.
