Personalised nutrition: top F&B trend for 2021

Tailored to Fit is one of Innova Market Insights’ Top Trends for 2021, bringing personalised nutrition further into the spotlight and highlighting how lifestyle-specific personalised nutrition services are gaining traction.

According to Lu Ann Williams, Global Insights Director at Innova Market Insights, technological advances and the ever-expanding choice in foodservice and retail are combining to allow consumers to adopt a more individual approach to eating, with personalised nutrition on the rise and moving beyond tailored diets.

Nearly two-thirds (64%) of global consumers in an Innova Consumer Survey said that they had found more ways to tailor their life and the products they bought to their individual style, beliefs and needs. The survey also found that the leading choice for personalising nutritional experiences was based on specific nutritional needs, ahead of lifestyle and body composition.

As this demand for personalised nutrition and nutrition services steps up, there are increasing numbers of personalised nutrition offerings, ranging from supplements to complete diets. Meanwhile, new technologies are being used to develop aids such as wearable devices, mobile apps and even more forward-looking options such as artificial intelligence and genetic profiling.

Williams said sophisticated personalised nutrition advice is still expensive.

“But the emergence of digital-driven solutions allows for a similar level of service in a completely automated way. Advances in technology are allowing this diversification and personalisation to be feasible even when focusing on relatively small consumer bases.”

As a result, the report said, nutrition that supports both physical and emotional wellbeing is thriving and can target the needs and preferences of different generations with more specific holistic approaches to help identify opportunities and optimise innovation.

Earlier research from Innova Market Insights identified key characteristics and differences among Generation Z, the Millennials, Generation X and the Baby Boomers, highlighting the form that a more holistic and customised health approach might take in each case.

There is a particular focus on ageing well, both for seniors and for younger demographics already engaging with preventative care. Joint health, energy/alertness, immune health, brain health and bone health are some of the fastest-growing active health claims for food and beverage launches in recent years, while targeting physical appearance via nutrition and diet is another area of growing interest.

There is also strong growth in product development for individual needs as consumers shift to new diets, with rising use of selected dietary claims in food and drinks products tracked by Innova Market Insights (Global CAGR 2016–2020). The use of keto-friendly claims rose 165% over this period, for example (although from a small base and highly regionalised), while plant-based positionings rose 36%. There was also rising activity in vegan products as well as in more established protein-rich and organic areas.

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