LAS VEGAS—As Steve French, managing partner, The Natural Marketing Institute, began his educational session at SupplySide West, he noted that his discussion of emerging trends would “fuse the personal and the planetary.” The subsequent presentation touched on such topics as energy, functional foods, inflammation and immunity, detoxification, prevention, and sustainability.
The industry has seen a slew of energy products hit the market in the last few years, and that will likely continue as energy gets diversified from beverages into foods, and targeted toward specific demographics. But at the other end of this spectrum lies the fact that sleeping pill prescriptions have increased 60% since 2000. “The majority of people believe their lack of sleep or lack of energy affects their ability to perform,” said French. This lack of either energy or sleep often leads directly into approaches to boost people’s immunity and prevent inflammation.
The number of health conditions mitigated via self care has also risen, and consumers generally do not find what they are looking for via traditional medicine. Some of the top perceived nutrient deficiencies include omega-3s, fiber, calcium, whole grains and antioxidants.
Other items of note on French’s radar include the observation that functional foods are rising faster than fortified these days, understanding of probiotics is still rather low but rising, the ongoing ascension of “ethical consumerism,” and the emerging category of detoxification, particularly among the members of Generation Y.
