“Free-from” trends: Spotlight shines on digestive comfort, allergies and better-for-you options

14 Jun 2023 --- Avoidance diets such as lactose-free and gluten-free are growing in today’s market. Consumers are looking for products that taste good and support their physical and mental well-being. This has led to a rise in better-for-you options, such as digestive wellness, sugar reduction, high protein, immune and gut health and “free-from” diets.

Food Ingredients First looks at the “free-from” sector, speaking with a range of experts.

According to the World Allergy Organization, food allergies affect an estimated 20 million people globally, meaning “free-from” supermarket sections today are often crucial to many.

The “free-from” category refers to specific non-allergenic ingredients consumers have decided to actively avoid. This can include products communicating on topics such as clean label, animal welfare, personalized nutrition, lower environmental impact, non-GMO, deforestation and human rights. 

“‘Free-from’ claims capture a host of consumer needs. These can range from the more traditional removal of allergens, additives or preservatives, all the way to the removal of specific ingredients to align with a consumer’s lifestyle, health or environmental concerns,” states Patti O’Keeffe RNutr, sustainable nutrition manager at Kerry. 

According to the World Allergy Organization, food allergies affect an estimated 20 million people globally.According to Tuula Hietanen, marketing manager at Valio, the reasons for following a “free-from” diet vary widely and may depend on food allergies and lifestyle choices. 

“There are a lot of free-from claims in the market. The number of ‘free-from’ claims and the varying definitions and regulations surrounding them can make it difficult for consumers to determine what a product contains or excludes,” she outlines. 

“As people want to avoid e-codes, unnatural ingredients, additives and long ingredient lists, it’s important to replace ingredients with a natural option without affecting the taste or texture of the final product.”

Providing trust and transparency 
For DSM, “expansion often breeds increased competition, and the ‘free-from’ segment is no exception here,” according to Melanie Luangrath, director new business development, Proteins of the Future at DSM-Firmenich. 

“We see brands taking one of two main paths; hyper-specific, personalized solutions or broad appeal ‘crowd pleasers.’ For the former, quality, trust and authenticity are key,” she explains.

“People with specialized dietary requirements need reassurance, so products with credible evidence to back their free-from claims are naturally positioned to rise to the top.”

Luangrath says the second key trend has “almost the opposite tone, with shoppers broadening their horizons to meet health and well-being goals.”

She believes these consumers are turning to gluten- or lactose-free products because of their perceived health benefits, which in turn fuels interest in alternatives to wheat and soy proteins. “Natural, non-GMO and allergen-free proteins like pea, canola and fava look like a real asset given this ‘conscious consumer’ context.”

Meanwhile, O’Keeffe RNutr at Kerry says that consumers are looking for increased transparency from brands and as a “free-from” claim is very definitive, these claims can provide consumers with the trust they seek. 

“The health of people and the planet are top consumer concerns today, and products bearing claims such as “free from” additives and artificial preservatives can be perceived by consumers to be healthier and more sustainable,” she explains. 

Soy starts to waver 
Highlighting the environmental impact of ingredients, Luangrath at DSM-Firmenich addresses soy protein’s popularity starting to waver due to concerns over its environmental impact, allergens, hormones and the presence of genetically modified crops throughout the supply chain. According to Kerry, consumers often rely on “free-from” claims to help them make informed purchasing decisions aligned with their needs or lifestyle choices.

She notes that soy is still one of the major market players, but the company is seeing demands evolve. “In response, naturally allergen-free alternatives like pea and canola proteins are on the up.”

Some examples are DSM-Firmenich’s Vertis CanolaPRO, a canola protein isolate, and the company’s Vertis pea and fava concentrates and the combination of these proteins, which is part of the Vertis Textured Vegetable Proteins range. 

“All of these offerings deliver high-quality plant protein while keeping products naturally soy-, gluten- and dairy-free,” adds Luangrath.  

“Pea and fava-bean proteins also show their value with added benefits like reduced sodium content. All-natural, sustainably produced and packed with vitamins, minerals and fiber, DSM-Firmenich’s range of pea and fava solutions unlocks products with a low environmental impact, good nutritional value, balanced taste profile and a range of functional properties – all without common allergens.”

Lactose-free in the spotlight 
Typically, with avoidance diets such as lactose-free becoming a growing segment, people want to have all the goodness of dairy without lactose and digestive discomfort.

Hietanen at Valio says that as these products are no longer limited to consumers with food allergies or intolerances, they are increasingly targeted toward mainstream consumers. 

“The global lactose-free dairy and baby food market is estimated to grow double-digit numbers in the next five years,” she continues. “The demand for lactose-free products is not limited to the dairy industry alone. Free-from lactose can expand to all food categories that include milk as an ingredient. The snack and indulgence categories, including milk chocolate, ice cream, and bakery products, have tremendous growth potential.”

For example, gluten- and lactose-free baked goods can have poor taste, appearance, texture and nutritional value. In Valio’s bakery applications, gluten is replaced with high-quality milk protein, which is lactose-free, to achieve gut-friendly, gluten-free bakery products that look and taste good while having good nutritional values.

Further, consumers are looking for products that alleviate troublesome symptoms and combine multiple benefits, such as high-protein content, less sugar and ease of use. 

“Benefit-bundle products allow food manufacturers to answer several current food trends. For example, with our dairy ingredients and solutions, lactose-free, high-protein and reduced sugar can be Free-from can also refer to specific non-allergenic ingredients consumers have decided to actively avoid.combined all into one product,” states Hietanen.

Long-standing and emerging trends in “free-from”
Historically, children’s products have been a key category for “free-from” claims, mainly due to the caution needed when introducing allergenic ingredients during the weaning period. 

Kerry’s O’Keeffe RNutr says that looking at global product launches, “free-from” claims outside allergen removal are growing in specific categories such as plant-based meat alternatives, snacks, bakery and cereals, to name a few. 

“These categories primarily focus on removing non-natural additives such as colors, flavors and preservatives,” she asserts. 

Meanwhile, foodservice is also a sector that has responded to the “free-from” consumer, she flags. “As ‘free-from’ mainstreams, there is a growing risk for foodservice providers of losing an entire table of customers by not accommodating the needs of even one individual with specific dietary requirements or preferences.

Kerry recently conducted an ethnography with plant-based consumers in Europe and found that while consumers noted improvements in the performance of plant-based meat alternatives, this resulted in a perceived compromise on product integrity. 

“Emerging behaviors indicate that consumers will scrutinize plant-based products more closely and reject those that do not deliver a clean label,” O’Keeffe RNutr comments. 

Luangrath, at DSM-Firmenich, adds that in the US, manufacturers of plant-based milk alternatives must frame their products’ nutritional information about traditional dairy products to give consumers a clear indication of how plant-based options measure up.  

“Inevitably, we see this move fostering a greater scrutiny of ‘free-from’ product labels and a resulting push by the industry to boost nutritional profiles. In just a few short years, we could see a whole new batch of ‘free-from’ products emerging that are healthier, tastier and more nutritionally complete than ever before,” she concludes. 

By Elizabeth Green