Looking to showcase the versatility and convenience of its gut health-focused ingredients, the firm has developed concepts created to appeal to the growing demographic of active consumers.
Gut health in sport nutrition
Paula Limena, the firm’s VP of global marketing for health and wellness, told NutraIngredients: “Consumers are getting smart around the role of the microbiome for their health and wellness with the global microbiome ingredient market sitting at $8.5 billion in 2022 and expected to reach $15.6 billion by 2027, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.93%.
"This is a faster CAGR than the general health and wellness category, and that’s due to this fast growing awareness around the benefits of good gut health (ADM Custom market estimations. Mordor Intelligence 2022 and Euromonitor Passport 2022),” she said.
The sports nutrition market has been growing its own demographic of gut health focused consumers searching for products that offer both functionality and performance benefits, she added.
Aiming to appeal to these gut health conscious active nutrition consumers, the firm created a ‘gut-muscle power’ gummy featuring its DE111 5Bi (Bacillus subtills) spore-forming probiotic. The ingredient has previously been studied with researchers concluding it may improve body composition in female soccer and volleyball players.
Thanks to this research backing, Limena said the gummies should appeal to the growing yet under-catered market of active menopausal women.
The firm has also developed gut health gummies featuring ADM/Matsutani LLC’s Fibersol prebiotic dietary fiber and heat-treated postbiotic Bifidobacterium longum subsp. longum CECT7347 (HT-ES1), plus mint extract.
Fibersol is a patented dietary fiber scientifically backed to support metabolic and gut health by nourishing intestinal flora, maintaining blood glucose levels and boosting satiety. The concept is expected to appeal to active females as Limena pointed out, “female consumers, in particular, right after practising sports tend to be very hungry so we look to give them satiety without needing to eat like a lion.”
Rapid rehydration
A number of suppliers discussed the growing trend for ‘holistic hydration’ during Vitafoods this year, with consumers on the search for rapid rehydration with added health benefits.
Tapping into this trend, ADM has created a rapid rehydration Cool Fit isotonic drink, featuring key vitamins and minerals—B6 and B12 vitamins, niacin, magnesium, choline, l-carnitine and caffeine from a natural source.
eSports
Andreas Petrik, marketing director for specialized nutrition at ADM, said gamers are a group of consumers looking for familiar but innovative convenient products to help them sustain their focus.
Speaking about the challenge of appealing to this audience, Petrik said it’s all about understanding the exact sub-category of consumer you are appealing to and fitting in with their mindset and ethos.
"The gamer playing on their phone at the bus stop is very different to the gamer spending six to eight hours playing on the computer each week," he said. “Those more dedicate gamers are looking to boost their concentrations through familiar snacks but without disturbing their focus or making their fingers sticky. They also don’t want to a high caffeine product because they are often playing just before bed."
ADM has developed Focus Gummies with guarana powder (a natural source of caffeine) alongside vitamin C from acerola powder and vitamin B12.
Smart flavor powder
With smart flavor pouches proving a popular social media trend across German speaking countries, Petrik said the interest in low sugar, functional flavour boosters is expected to take off elsewhere in Europe.
"Consumers have a dilemma because they know it’s good to avoid sugar but doing this makes their diet quite bland and boring," he said. “With a functional flavor pouch, we can provide a sugar-free way to add flavor and health benefits to plain foods, such as yogurt."
The ADM concept is a calamansi flavor (citrus fruit native to the Philippines enjoying popularity in Indonesia) powder with added Fibersol and DE111 spore-forming probiotic to provide gut and digestive health support, plus acerola powder with vitamin C, stevia and natural flavors. The powder can be mixed into yogurt, milk, or used when baking healthy snacks.
Petrik explained that social media health and nutrition influencers have been driving the trend for flavor powders in German speaking countries thanks to the many recipe idea content opportunities.
But the category is by no means a new concept to other European countries.
“Bodybuilders used to use flavor powders, which they would pick up in the baking section of the store, to flavor their protein shakes—I see this more as a re-birth of that trend," he said.