This shows the increasing consumer trend towards healthier and functional products, not only in developed markets such as western Europe but also in the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries, according to Lauren Bandy, an analyst at Euromonitor International.
She found that nearly 30% of all food and beverage ingredients globally were consumed in Asia Pacific in 2012, up from 24% in 2007. The primary cause of the shift was increased consumption of commodity and bulk ingredients such as cereals, meats, milk, oils and sweeteners. This was in contrast to a decline in the share of the overall global ingredients market in North America and western Europe.
‘One third of the world's food’
“The two regions combined still consume over one-third of the world’s food and beverage ingredients but the economic downturn took its toll, with volume sales in packaged food and soft drinks stagnating in both regions,” she wrote on the Euromonitor website. Reflecting on 2012 trends, Bandy said the US was the only Western country that appears in the top five markets for flavour enhancers. While China dominates the market, consuming 1.3Mt in 2012, Indonesia is set to achieve the fastest growth globally in absolute terms, at just under 150,000t, from 2012–2017.
In Western Europe, regardless of sliding sugar confectionery sales in both volume and value terms, consumption of natural product colours has grown by over one-third since 2007.
“The trend towards natural colours, flavours and preservatives in confectionery has been very strong as consumers become wary of their children in particular eating products that contain synthetic ingredients,” she added.
Key growth areas
Two other key growth areas are proteins and speciality fibre ingredients. In North America, 5% of protein ingredients were consumed in snack bars in 2012, yet the product category accounted for 30% of total volume growth of these ingredients over 2007–2012.
Speciality fibres are forecast to do well in meal replacement and convalescence products.