Functional and immune-boosting ingredients for F&B applications
19 Jun 2020 | Wellmune
Before the pandemic, immunity was already a mainstay of the nutrition space. It is now seeing a surge in demand as consumers turn to supplementation to build up resilience from infection. Laura Collins details the latest proprietary data from Wellmune, a Kerry brand, which examines this shift in consumer awareness and trending usage of healthy lifestyle ingredients in fortified beverages, foods and supplements.
This is Benjamin Ferreir on behalf of Nutrition Insight.
I'm joined today by Laura Collins, and she is the business development manager at Wellmune with CARI.
Laura, who has a PhD in immunology, is here to speak with us about the current surge in consumer demand for functional ingredients, in particular, those that boost the immune system.
Hi, Laura.
Hi, Ben, thanks for having me.
Thank you.
For, for our first question, do you believe the surge in demand for immune boosting ingredients is sustainable?
Yes, so I would say the demand for immunity is really driven by our new normal.
However, pre-COVID, we knew that immunity was really top of mind for consumer.
Kerry undertook proprietary data last April to understand consumer awareness and usage of healthy lifestyle ingredients in fortified foods, beverages and supplements.
The study was over 11,000 consumers in 14 markets, and it showed that the number one reason globally for purchasing healthy lifestyle products was immunity.
The new normal has really showed a more informed consumer looking for information, and there have been many statistics thrown around recently regarding consumers, but I find the most powerful one is that searches for immune system as a desired function of food rose 670% globally in the first two weeks of March.
This is a reindication of immune health and demand from consumers at this time and pre-COVID.
Interesting.
And do you see increased innovation happening in the space currently?
Consumers are taking a long-term preventive approach to their health now more than ever.
While consumers are seeking these immune health benefits from their food, beverages and supplements, they find it hard to find innovative products that are natural, safe, and clinically proven for the entire family.
However, we are seeing an increased innovation and NPD in this space.
Which categories do you see are innovating the most within this dynamic space?
Then, like in the form of great tasting on the go, shots and kids' pouches, these are due to the fact that wellmine is a really versatile ingredient and that can be used in a lot of different applications.
However, we focus its use in applications that offer health benefits such as supplements, healthy snacks, dairy, vitamin and mineral enriched beverages, and other forms of nutritional beverages.
What is the importance of scientific evidence supporting the efficacy of your functional ingredients?
Brands will need to be mindful to the degree to which they deliver on an immunity claim.
Consumers are now looking for transparency on brands that they can trust now more than ever.
Just prior to the pandemic, the global consumer survey that Kerry conducted that I just mentioned, found that 39% of consumers would be more likely to buy a healthy lifestyle product with claims based on scientific evidence.
Post-COVID, consumers may pay more attention to the signs of food functionality, and consumers want nutrition that will boost their immune system.
And how does Kry support a customer that's keen to explore launching a product that can answer this demand for functional ingredients?
So Kerry as a taste and nutrition company on the development of a full immunity beverage we can support there.
As mentioned, our Wellimmune is a clinically supporting health ingredient.
While there's no specific research demonstrating the effectiveness of Wellmune against illness like coronavirus, a supported immune system may be one of the best defenses against health challenges.
We have a large amount of published data demonstrating that Wellimmune improves immunity, such as the reduction of upper respiratory tract infections.
Finally, the Wellmun brand confers a strong immunity message to consumers.
In other countries, this, along with strong education and promotion of the benefits, have enabled companies to recognize the potential of Wellmun and offers them and their customers.
Wellmun is now sold in over 60 countries.
Interesting.
Thank you very much, Laura.
Thank you.
