New food and drink product launches with low carb claims in Europe have soared – nearly doubling – over the past five years.
Laura Jones, food science analyst at Mintel, said the current resurgence could be traced back to the low carb diets made famous by the Atkins diet. “The Atkins diet did manage to make consumers a lot more ‘carb conscious’ and aware of the quantity and quality of carbohydrates they consume,” said Jones.
“This underlying level of consciousness has been retained by some consumers. As recent launch of low carb options across Europe started to include a wider range of products normally associated with carbohydrates, this is said to be one of the drivers behind the recent resurgence in the launch of low carb food and drink products across Europe.”
Pasta products and baking
This year, 10% of low carbohydrate food and drink launches were pasta products and baking ingredients or mixes. Bread accounted for 9% of carb launches while snack, cereal and energy bars made up 8%.
The top three countries in Europe for new low carbohydrate food and drink product launches were France, accounting for 17%, and Germany and Spain where the category accounted for 15% of new product development.
Growing interest in high protein was also said to be helping the comeback of low carb. European new product launches in the food and drink category carrying both a low carb and high protein claim rocketed by more than half (57%) during the past five years.
New launches in Europe making just a high protein claim have nearly tripled since 2008. Growth has been driven by snacks, yogurt and prepared meals. This year, snack product introductions making a protein claim accounted for 24% of the total. Dairy launches made up 20%, while processed fish, meat and egg products accounted for 15%.
Also, as protein delivered satiety benefits, it offered an important component in weight management. New products launched in Europe carrying high satiety claims rocketed by 164% over the past five years.
‘Attempting to widen their appeal’
“Low carb products still occupy a relative niche position in the market,” said Jones. “Although they will never appeal to all consumers, the recent launches of low carb products in Europe are attempting to widen their appeal.”
Meanwhile, Mintel researchers noted that dairy products are a good source of natural protein that has served as a base for high protein claims. In particular, milk has gained recognition over recent years as an ideal sports drink. About 20% of UK consumers believe milk is a good drink to enjoy during and after sport, said Mintel. That compares with 52% of Italian consumers, 49% of French, consumers and 37% of Germans.
Chris Brockman, senior global food and drink analyst at Mintel, said the the ‘health halo’ of dairy products referred to the natural goodness of milk, supplied in the form of protein, calcium and minerals. It can provide a more nutritionally dense drink than commercial sports drinks, he said.
“While milk becomes more recognised as a sports drink, there will be more focus on the amount of protein, type of protein and even the ratio of protein like whey and casein,” said Brockman. “More science-led milk based drinks will emerge positioned as a sports drink, possibly with different formulations for pre-, during and post exercise.”
But to exploit the trend, manufacturers will need to address the perception of milk being less refreshing than carbohydrate-based drinks, he warned.