Yoghurt to boost your brain. Gummies for your gut. Even milk powders to help you live longer. Functional foods are promising bigger claims than ever and riding a wave of a surging interest that has seen the market grow to more than $330bn worldwide, according to Grand View Research.
To capitalise, food manufacturers around the world are pumping big bucks into some of the biggest trends such as gut health, cognitive ability and longevity, fuelling forecasts of further growth that could reach $600bn by 2030, Grand View Research said.
But is it wise?
The risk of course is that current trends prove to be a flash in the pan, soon gone and leaving today’s hot products forgotten in a lost warehouse corner. So are they backing the next big thing or doomed for a fall?
Gut health is one of the central pillars of today’s market, sought out by 40% of functional nutrition shoppers making it the second most popular benefit after energy, a survey by McKinsey found last year.
No wonder then the global gut health market was valued at $117bn last year and forecast to hit $270bn by 2034, according to Magnitude Biosciences.
The rise has been fuelled by a recent boom in gut health medical research which has found strong links between the microbiome and other aspects of health, such as immunity or mental health. In turn, this has made its way into the public consciousness through a mix of corporate marketing and social media trends, driving greater shopper awareness and a thriving market.
It seems everyone big and small is trying to grab a piece of the pie, from PepsiCo’s $2bn acquisition of gut health soda brand Poppi, to start-up Bio & Me, a rapidly growing player in the UK with its range of gut-health cereals.
It’s everywhere. Coca-Cola released Simply Pop a prebiotic drink, Nestle launched a line aimed at healthy ageing, while dairy giant Arla created its whole Cultura range focused purely on gut health. In fact, few supermarket aisles have escaped the gut health takeover with breads, honeys, and cookies all among the ranks of products promising intestinal benefits.
Food and drink for better gut health
“Gut health has become prolific because health itself is no longer perceived as episodic, elitist or corrective,” says Karine Dussimon, global insight manager for health and wellness at Euromonitor International.
What sets gut health apart - especially compared to other functional trends like protein or skin health - is that it functions less as a single benefit and more as a platform for multiple health benefits, Dussimon adds. “This gives gut health unusual strategic flexibility across categories and consumption occasions.”
In recent months, TikTok has driven a further surge for gut health as ‘fibremaxxing’ - strategically maximising the fibre in your food - became the latest trend of digestive wellness. 45% of Americans are now actively seeking high-fibre options on menus, according to a recent survey by Revenue Management Solutions.
Major food companies are quickly catching up. Coca Cola CEO James Quincey predicted there would be “fibre creep” this year, noting the nutrient can be put into anything because of its solubility. “We sell Diet Coke with fibre in Japan,” he said.
The opportunity is sizeable because cognitive health is no longer confined to supplements or early‑life nutrition
Karine Dussimon, Euromonitor International
In October, PepsiCo CEO Ramon Laguarta joined the chorus, forecasting “fibre will be the next protein,” and said it is now at the top of the company’s product goals for this year. The FMCG giant has just launched its Smartfood Fiber Pop snack range, featuring six grams of fibre per serving.
However, what could differentiate fibre from the so-far short-lived protein-trend is both greater scientific credibility and a more experiential impact on an individual’s sense of wellbeing, according to Hamish Renton, CEO at food and drink consultancy HRA Global. “The fibre trend has a lot of legs,” he says. “I think we it could be with us for a decade.”
While gut health powers on, other functional food trends are looking to emulate its performance of combining credible scientific claims with savvy marketing. Cognitive health, for example, has largely emerged since the pandemic with consumers around the world looking for new products that can help bring mental energy, quality sleep and reduced stress.
One-in-five functional nutrition shoppers are now seeking out brain health as a key benefit while one-in-ten are after calmness, the McKinsey survey found.
Top functional food trends
As new products emerge, manufacturers’ health claims are primarily based on nutrients such as omega-3s, polyphenols, antioxidants, and B-vitamins, according to the Kerry Health and Nutrition Institute.
Marks & Spencer, for example, launched its Brain Food range last year with products such as yoghurts and salads containing at least two of the six brain supporting nutrients many of us supposedly lack.
“The opportunity is sizeable because cognitive health is no longer confined to supplements or early‑life nutrition,” said Dussimon. “It is expanding into drinks, snacks and hybrid formats that blur the line between indulgence and function.”
It can be a tough nut to crack though, even for those with the deepest pockets. In late 2024, Nestle’s research and development arm was reported to be testing a new brain health drink called Mind Fuel. The company seemed to be using sponsored content to gauge interest on a potential move into mental wellness, but in the year since, no further signs have emerged.
The same goes for longevity, a recent trend that has spurred manufacturers to begin talking of a need to cater to elderly populations wanting to sustain their health. The market is now worth over $21bn and projected to reach $63bn by 2035 by Market Research Future, buoyed by rapidly aging populations across the globe.
Healthy ageing has long been a mainstay of medications and supplements, but there are now the first signs of a creep into food too with Nestlé launch its N3 milk powder in China in 2023.
There are particular signs of success in Asia where some manufacturers are framing longevity through credible, everyday nutrition rather than abstract anti‑ageing promises, says Dussimon. Maeil Soymilk Lentil Beans, for example, was rolled out last summer and was sold out within a week of its launch.
This framing could be crucial. After all, the clear problem longevity faces is that products promising health ageing are unlikely to produce a noticeable effect on a person’s wellbeing, Renton points out. It is also difficult to prove a clear causational link meaning scientific credibility could be hard to build. “At best it’s a punt. At worse it’s a racket,” he says.