BENEO, one of the leading manufacturers in functional ingredients, participated in FIC 2019 in Shanghai to demonstrate how the industry can create innovative sportified food and drink products that are relevant and appealing to mainstream consumers.
Driven by growing national health awareness and the advancement of national fitness activities, China’s sports nutrition market continues to expand. In 2018, the overall size of China’s sports nutrition market amounted to 329 million US dollars. In the past five years, the compound annual growth rate of industrial retail sales reached up to 40%, a figure higher than that of the global and US market. Sports nutrition is expected to be a segment that will see high demand growth in the future. In addition to athletes and bodybuilders, consumers pursuing a high quality of life will also be the target group of sports nutrition.
Christian Philippsen, Managing Director at BENEO Asia Pacific, comments: “The particular challenge is that sportified products should be for everybody, not just for athletes. Our focus on sportified products for mainstream consumers has shone the light on the growth potential available to manufacturers who are prepared to be innovative. It is estimated that the Chinese market will have a scale of 859 million US dollars by 2023, making China the world’s fastest growing market for sports nutrition products.”
Active consumers want products that help them to look and feel good, manage their busy day and maintain a healthier weight. This means that blood sugar management, sustained energy and fat burning impact are of great importance to them. However, a lot of sports and fitness-related products in the market contain ‘fast carbohydrates’ such as maltodextrin, glucose syrup and sucrose, which release glucose into the bloodstream very quickly and generally suppress fat oxidation. While suitable for those in need of instant energy, high-glycaemic carbohydrates are not ideal for consumers looking for endurance in their training, for day-to-day sports activities, or for achieving balanced energy levels throughout the day.
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