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Strong growth potential for India’s probiotics & postbiotics-fortified F&B market
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Saturday, 16 December, 2023, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Catarina Rodrigues & Dr Monica Maria Olivares
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In the last five years, the global fortified foods market has grown steadily at 2.5% CAGR and is expected to rise to 6.2% CAGR from 2023 to 2033, amidst health concerns and as consumers become increasingly aware of the importance of good nutrition and the benefits of fortified foods.
Fortified food and beverage are products that have added micronutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and essential nutrients, to improve its nutritional quality. A common example is milk; while it is high in calcium, it lacks other nutrients and is usually fortified with vitamin D. Staples like wheat flour, cereals, cooking oil, juice, and rice, are often fortification as this helps countries achieve their nutrition development goals on a mass scale.
Micronutrients aside, probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics are also gaining popularity. Probiotics are live bacteria in the digestive system needed to keep the body healthy. Prebiotics are what probiotics feed on for growth, and postbiotics are the byproducts produced by the life cycle of probiotics. Together, they make up what is usually known as “good bacteria” that keeps the balance in the gut, and are said to support immunity, energy, better sleep, weight loss, cognitive health, even mood
According to an Innova global study, consumers are interested in having functional ingredients, such as prebiotics (37%), probiotics (43%), and postbiotics (28%) in their food and beverage products because of their perceived health benefits.
India has high potential for probiotics
In India, high levels of vitamin and mineral deficiencies are fuelling the demand for fortified foods and beverages in the country. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has said that the country’s top public health concern is micronutrient deficiency. The good news is that this can be prevented with the right nutrition.
As a result, government initiatives and campaigns, like Eat Right India, are promoting fortified foods as part of their approach to improve the health and nutrition of the nation’s 1.3 billion people. The potential is there — a 2023 report by Future Market Insights placed India as the fastest growing market for fortified foods with a CAGR of 18.4%. Research and Markets predicts India’s probiotics market to hit around $92 million by 2027, from $31 million in 2021.
Similarly, Euromonitor ranked India as one of the top three countries in Asia to have the highest potential for probiotics, with 21.4% of consumers saying they look for probiotics claims on labels, after China (31.6%) and Thailand (23.3%).
However, while there is high demand from consumers, Euromonitor found that these three countries have low probiotic claim prevalence: China with 0.9%, Thailand with 0.6%, and India with 0.3%.
Dairy continues to lead probiotic product launches
According to Fortune Business Insights, India is currently the world’s largest producer of milk and largest exporter of dairy products. The Indian dairy market was worth $115.57 billion in 2022 and is on the track to reach $227.53 billion by 2030.
This is encouraging for manufacturers as dairy remains the top category for new probiotic-fortified product launches, comprising 36% of all new global launches in 2020. Supplements (21%) came in second place, while the baby and toddler category took third place, accounting for 20% of new global probiotic product launches.
Dairy has a history of probiotics use in cultured products such as milk and yoghurt and is now evolving to include probiotic formulas for dairy alternatives. In India, this can be seen in locally produced probiotic yoghurt drinks launched in 2021, and dairy-free coconut yoghurt products launched in 2020 that carry claims of being preservatives-free and rich in probiotics.
Probiotic-enriched products are going beyond gut health
Gut health claims had the highest market share (19.7%) from 2020 to 2022, however, this may soon change as the probiotic category expands to accommodate other health claims. Skin health claims in probiotic-enriched foods grew 50.9% CAGR from 2019 to 2022.
Energy and alertness claims (15.9% CAGR) came in second. Its category growth can be seen in recent market launches that include probiotic-enhanced energy drinks that feature added health benefits and have been scientifically proven to increase vigour by up to 42%, reduce fatigue by 38% and tension by 19%.
In line with India’s nationwide effort to address malnourishment in kids, there is good potential for probiotic-enriched baby and toddler products that support immunity. Current products in the market that address this concern include those that come with science-backed results for reducing diarrhoea, respiratory infections, and milk allergies in infants.
The emerging postbiotics market
As the preventive health trend continues to boost demand for natural solutions, manufacturers around the globe are also taking notice of postbiotics and its benefits. Recent product launches across the globe include sparkling kombucha, dietary supplements, and even vegan supplements.
A report by Meticulous Research projected the postbiotics market to reach US$24 million by 2029, with Asia Pacific as the fastest growing region. The report also identified the sports nutrition industry as the key driver for growth in the market.
Backed by government initiatives and changing consumer lifestyles in India that lean towards dairy-, allergen-, and sugar-free formulations, the demand and market growth for pro and postbiotics products in the country is expected to accelerate in the coming years.
(Rodrigues is senior marketing manager - supplements, Kerry APMEA; Dr Olivares is Kerry global RD&A director, Women and Infant Health)
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