FCI’s COVID-19 roundtable focalizes increased parental and elderly spending on immunity

30 Oct 2020 --- COVID-19 has prompted parents to spend more money on immunity products for their children. At the other end of the age spectrum, older people are particularly at risk, which has created new salience for the healthy aging market. Other impacted areas include gut health and harnessing online channels like never before. 

This was detailed at FrieslandCampina Ingredients (FCI)’s virtual event, which saw a host of topics addressed by interdisciplinary experts. Visitors were free to “walk” around the digital space and interact with avatars providing information about the company’s offerings.

The event’s agenda was designed around the trends shaping current and future innovation in nutritional products, Vicky Davies, global marketing director performance, active and medical nutrition at FCI, tells NutritionInsight.

“We observed that recovery (muscle health and mobility), gut and immune health are prominent given increased consumer awareness about the beneficial effects of nutrition on these health areas, linked often to the microbiome. This is true for both early life and adult nutrition,” she says. 

Davies also notes that over the last year, there has been a renewed and accelerated focus on health, especially for consumers in the early life and adult nutrition segments.FCI’s digital event allowed visitors to “walk” around the space and interact with avatars.

Moving online
At a roundtable about COVID-19’s impact on consumer behavior, Dr. Irene Tijssen, senior consumer market analyst at Innova Market Insights, observes that both purchasing and information sourcing has been moving online. While this was the case before the pandemic, COVID-19 has only served to accelerate this. 

“Even when the pandemic is over, companies and consumers will continue to move toward digital platforms,” she predicts.

The rise of e-commerce has also been commented on by other industry movers as the pandemic is altering consumer behavior. 

Parents spend more money on immunity
Tijssen also shared that parents today are willing to pay a premium price for products targeting their children’s immune system. 

“Immunity has always been a very important topic in early life nutrition, but due to COVID-19, parents are more concerned about their own immunity and that of their children,” Tijssen says. 

However, she notes that the infant nutrition category tends to be stable, with disruptive trends usually bypassing sectors like formula. Part of this is due to regulation and R&D costs. 

Quality and trust are also especially important aspects of infant nutrition, with many parents unwilling to compromise on these elements for other trends. 

Older consumer’s skepticism 
Meanwhile, older people are overrepresented in COVID-19 deaths. Michael Hughes, director of insights and research at FMCG Gurus, notes that the disease is having a serious impact on senior citizens.

“As a result of this, older consumers will be more willing to turn to products with ingredients deemed functional to help boost their immune system,” he notes.

However, as consumers get older, they can become skeptical of the health and wellness market. Hughes notes this group tends to believe that they know best what constitutes a healthy diet, and they don’t need “young marketeers” telling them how to live healthily. 

“What’s really important with these better-for-you products is that they’re not positioned as a magic bullet health solution where claims are seen as outlandish or misleading,” Hughes explains. The hyper-clean environment spurred by COVID-19 could impact the gut microbiome.

A good gut feeling?
Gut health has also come to the fore in recent months, in part thanks to its connection to immunity. 

Professor John Cryan, head anatomy and neuroscience at the University College Cork in Ireland, comments that the holistic nature of the gut is only just starting to be appreciated. 

“People are beginning to understand that if their gut is not working appropriately, they may have problems relating to managing stress, which ties into the immune system. We really see that everything is connected – this is one of the take-home messages we want to get out.”

Cryan observes that the pandemic has led to changes in social interactions, but people must appreciate that the gut microbiome can be influenced by interactions with each other and with nature. 

“Only time will tell how this has shaped the microbiome. For example, we are now living with hyper-cleanliness, which is affecting the environment we live in.”

The road ahead
Tijssen anticipates that current short-term trends like immunity, gut health and mental health will all also exist in the longer-term, albeit with some shifts. 

Other long-term themes include transparency, personalization and sustainability – as also detailed in Innova Market Insights’ Top Ten Trends for 2021. 

“The areas of gut, immunity and overall health and well-being are the hottest topics we are observing. They will influence the industry in the coming years, with consumers searching for nutritional solutions to meet their needs,” adds Floor van der Horst, global marketing director of early life nutrition and cell nutrition at FCI.

By Katherine Durrell