FrieslandCampina Ingredients predicts holistic health and alt-dairy as key 2024 nutrition trends

08 Jan 2024 --- To help brands unlock new areas for innovation and new product development in nutrition, FrieslandCampina Ingredients spotlights five crucial nutritional trends for 2024, and offers insights into the latest consumer research and market trends. The company expects these trends to drive the food, drink and supplement industries this year. 

The five trends shaping consumer habits in nutrition the company focuses on are — “Securing the future, sustainably,” “Nutrition for all,” “Alt proteins go global,” “Going beyond via the gut” and “Aging and recovering well.” 

Nutrition Insights meets up with Vicky Davies, global marketing director of performance, active and medical nutrition at FrieslandCampina Ingredients, to discuss the research behind these trends, the continued interest in holistic health and the growing demand for alternative protein. 

“As we head into a new year, the biggest thing for brands to understand is that people continue to face significant stresses, both on a personal and a global scale. This can lead to lots of uncertainty, so what consumers want most now is a sense of control. They’re achieving this by using healthy nutrition as a positive force. The research showed that over half of consumers see healthy eating as their top priority.” 

Eating well means feeling well is becoming mainstream, as consumers make positive nutrition choices to gain control.She adds that “eating well means feeling well” is becoming mainstream, asserting consumers make positive choices to gain control, even when faced with unavoidable external pressures. 

“For nutrition brands, the question to ask in 2024 is, ‘How can we make it even easier for consumers to make these positive choices?’ This could mean anything from providing more sustainable nutrition options or investing in convenient formats so people can eat healthy even when not cooking from scratch.”

Moving into holistic health 
FrieslandCampina Ingredients uses market research to build a deep understanding of what people want to guide its developments and help customers create on-trend products that meet consumers’ health and nutrition needs. 

Davies highlights that a trend the company has been proactively monitoring for some time has been the shift toward holistic health — especially the simultaneous prioritization of physical and mental well-being. “Recognizing this emerging trend led to our initial launch of our Biotis GOS prebiotic in 2020, just as awareness of the gut microbiome as a powerhouse for overall well-being started to gain traction.” 

“Since then, mental well-being has become increasingly important thanks to factors like the pandemic, the cost of living, and rising geo-political tensions. As a result, consumers are more interested in maintaining good holistic health. 

“For example, the research in our new magazine showed that people not only associate good mental well-being with feeling happy and an improved mood but also with feeling active, energetic and alert. There are a host of ingredients that consumers are turning to here, from omega-3s to prebiotics or botanicals.” 

Combining health benefits 
FrieslandCampina Ingredients offers a range of ingredients with holistic benefits, such as Biotis Fermentis — a combination of whey protein and prebiotics (Biotis GOS), fermented with probiotics. 

Davies explains that Biotis GOS is part of the company’s growing gut health range and is also available as a standalone ingredient in functional food and drink applications. 

“Our GOS ingredient is the most researched in the world and has been proven to deliver holistic health benefits as a result of positively influencing the gut microbiome, including improved digestive health and even improved mental well-being.” 

She adds that Biotis Fermentis, which targets the sports nutrition market, taps into multiple consumer needs by providing proven physical and mental health benefits. This includes “improved gut health and muscle support (via the gut-muscle axis), as well as improved mood and energy levels.” 

Consumers are increasingly aware of how the gut affects immune, brain and muscle health.“Not only does this appeal to health-conscious consumers that are increasingly physically active and gut-aware, but there’s also a huge opportunity for this solution in targeting professional athletes, who disproportionately suffer with gastrointestinal complaints.” 

The company predicts that gut health is going beyond digestive comfort. Consumers are increasingly aware of how the gut affects immune, brain and muscle health. FrieslandCampina Ingredients recommends brands capitalize on this awareness by taking a holistic mind and body approach to gut health solutions. 

Alternative dairy and proteins 
Davies shares that FrieslandCampina Ingredients is innovating to meet the needs of the growing flexitarian market. This space is fuelled by health consciousness as people want to eat more protein to support an active lifestyle. 

She details that 45% of global consumers eat or drink alt-dairy products, driven by personal preferences and the perception that plant proteins are highly nutritious. 

“But while this trend looks set to stay, creating products with lasting power can be difficult. The novelty of a new plant-based product can pique consumer curiosity enough for a one-off purchase. But it won’t lead to a repeat purchase if it’s not tasty and nutritious.” 

“Our Plantaris range is designed specifically for this reason — it has a neutral taste and a smooth mouthfeel, all while delivering a high level of plant protein.”

Looking to 2024 and beyond, Davies predicts alternative protein innovation will continue to advance as technologies like precision fermentation take off. 

“We recently partnered with Triplebar Bio Inc. to develop and scale up the production of cell-based precision fermentation proteins to futureproof protein solutions in line with this evolving need. But much work is still to be done here — consumer familiarity with precision fermentation is currently low — but with the right mix of innovation and education, its integration into the mainstream could be very exciting.” 

Demand for alternative proteins is fuelled by health conscious people to support an active lifestyle (Image credit: FrieslandCampina Ingredients).Internal consumer research by FrieslandCampina Ingredients indicates that only 14% of British and 23% of US consumers are familiar with precision fermentation. Consumers familiar with the technology have mixed feelings, expressing concerns over taste and safety while seeing that the process has environmental and animal welfare benefits. 

Personalized, sustainable nutrition 
FrieslandCampina Ingredients also expects that in 2024, consumers will increasingly understand their unique nutritional needs based on age, gender, genetics and lifestyle, and seek tailored solutions to meet those needs. The company sees an opportunity for brands to develop tailored nutritional applications as consumers observe a lack of available products. 

The company’s trend report highlights that consumers look to age healthily, with older consumers focusing on how their diets can support them in living healthier and being active for longer. 

At the same time, FrieslandCampina Ingredients highlights the need for high-quality nutrients, such as protein, to support muscle maintenance and recovery from illness. 

Recently, the company launched Nutri Whey ProHeat, a microparticulated whey protein that can be included in oral nutritional supplements for the medical nutrition market — an area that traditionally excludes whey protein as generic sources cannot tolerate high-heat treatments used in medical nutrition. 

FrieslandCampina Ingredients also reveals that in 2024, “sustainability can make or break a brand’s reputation.” The company explains that consumers actively seek “planet-first nutrition” — products proven good for planetary and human health. 

Observing that some consumers are skeptical about claims and concerned about greenwashing, FrieslandCampina Ingredients urges manufacturers to ensure robust and tangible data to back up their sustainability claims to ensure long-term business success. 

By Jolanda van Hal