Omega-3-infused Sales Skyrocketing to $7 Billion by 2011

26/02/07 Market research publisher Packaged Facts chronicles the meteoric rise of Omega-3 fatty acids-enhanced foods and beverages in a new study titled Omega 3 Fatty Acids and the U.S. Food and Beverage Market, which shows a market growing from its meager beginnings at approximately $100 million in 2002 to more than $2 billion in 2006.

Packaged Facts projects that sales of ALA, DHA, and EPA-infused foods will reach $7 billion by 2011, a compound annual growth rate estimated at over 60% from 2002 to 2011. Dominated by sales of grain-based foods, including bars, breads, and cereals, which currently control 86% of the market, the report suggests that the dairy segment will soon gain a sizable chunk of the market share as the popularity of enhanced yogurts, milks, ice creams and cheeses begins to take off.

Bolstered by the FDA’s approval of a qualified health claim for reduced risk of coronary heart disease on conventional foods containing DHA and EPA in 2004, the market has quickly blossomed as Omega-3-enhanced foods and beverages have come out of their natural food niche and are transitioning quickly into the mainstream, a fact substantiated by their increased popularity in traditional supermarkets, where sales now account for 50% of the market.

“Omega-3-fortified foods are highly recognizable to today’s health-conscious consumer, and the once ‘fishy-flavored foods’ are now behind us, thanks to exceptional advances in Omega-3 food ingredients,” said Don Montuori, the publisher of Packaged Facts. “By all indications, the addition of Omega 3s is not only the current hottest fortified food trend, it will remain so for years to come.”