Macro market dynamics boost gut health product opportunities:
Top 10 Biotics Opportunities to Accelerate Microbiome-Enhancing Foods, Beverages and Supplements
Insight: January 2024
Share:
The COMET team of microbiome experts has scoured and crunched the data to present four, relevant and prevailing MACRO MARKET TRENDS that draw out what we see as the TOP 10 BIOTICS OPPORTUNITIES waiting to be tapped in food, beverage and supplement development for the year ahead:
Product marketers should be keen to recognize that while today’s consumers are enamored with dramatic weight loss effects of Ozempic (and similar) drugs available, prebiotic fibers can also plug into the conversation with improved insulin responses and appetite regulation.
If brands are not clued into Gen Zers yet, they should be, as this group will surpass Millennials as the largest consumer base in the U.S. by 2026.
Women have unique needs through their many ages and stages in life, including menstrual and vaginal health, conception, pregnancy, menopause and more needs that shift on a monthly or mid-monthly basis.
Cost-effective products that deliver multiple, synergistic benefits, whether actual or perceived, is the name of the game on this trend.
MACRO MARKET TREND:
OFFER AN OZEMPIC ALTERNATIVE
Obesity Rates Continue to Climb
Over 750 million individuals worldwide including about 42 percent of American adults are obese.* Even more are dealing with metabolic syndrome disorders including type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
Despite an abundance of products and diets on the market, maintaining long-term weight loss is unachievable for most individuals. This along with skepticism over BMI’s relationship to overall health, has led some individuals to ditch diet culture in favor of health at every size mindset.
Nonetheless, demand for weight loss solutions is still high as obesity-related illnesses incur billions of dollars in health care costs each year in the US.**
Sources:
The Ozempic Effect is Intoxicating
Given the need for effective weight loss solutions, significant research investments have been made to find alternatives beyond diet and exercise.
This has led to the development of incretin-based therapies, which include the GLP-1 drugs Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro.
The drugs mimic a glucagon-like peptide that regulates appetite in the brain, leaving people feeling sated for hours. The drugs have proven to be incredibly successful in promoting weight loss leading to high consumer demand.
1.7%
of Americans were prescribed a semaglutide drug in 2023*
Studies have found that all GLP-1 drugs can lead to weight loss of about 10.5 to 15.8 pounds**
of the U.S. population may be taking GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic by 2030***
But Will It Last?
While CPG food manufacturers and retailers, including Walmart, are nervous that weight-loss drugs have reduced food consumption, these medications are likely not a sustainable weight-loss option for most Americans.
The cost is out of reach for many as Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs can list at $900 or more per month.
In addition, questions remain concerning the drugs’ long-term effects on the body, in particular the GI tract. By constantly signaling to the brain that the body is full, peristalsis (rippling GI waves that push contents through the gut) is slowed, thereby disrupting the body’s natural digestion process.
of GLP-1 drug users stopped taking the medication after year one
WHY?
Expense (70% of Americans surveyed indicated they can not afford Ozempic), weight loss plateaus, and supply shortages contribute to short-term use*
Be the first to receive info on our latest research
and advancements in the prebiotic market.
ABOUT tHE author
As a Registered Dietitian, Hannah Ackermann uses her expertise to drive COMET’s nutrition strategy and educate consumers. Hannah oversees COMET’S marketing and communications, including providing insights on market research and consumer trends.
Before joining COMET, Hannah worked in nutrition marketing at leading global market research and public relations firms. Hannah holds Bachelor’s degrees in Nutritional Science and Journalism, and a Masters of Business Administration in Marketing.
ABOUT COMET
The vast majority (90%) of Americans are falling short of their dietary fiber needs despite growing awareness of its many health benefits. Food manufacturers have yet to find the perfect fiber ingredient – one that is natural, functional, and versatile – to fill the 2-million-ton annual fiber gap in the US alone.
Meanwhile, nature’s best dietary fiber, arabinoxylan, has laid dormant in plant materials left behind and processed out of our modern food system. Arabinoxylan is an exceptional soluble dietary fiber with clinically proven prebiotic health benefits and superior tolerance in the gut.
Only COMET has the patented upcycling technology needed to unlock arabinoxylan’s full potential and make it available in our proprietary line of Arrabina prebiotic dietary fibers. ARRABINA’s versatility makes it easy to add the clinically proven benefits of arabinoxylan to ANY food/beverage/supplement application and help close the fiber gap.
