The botanists are increasingly present , and with evidence,
in the global food and drinks. This is attested by a survey by Innova Market
Insights, which indicates that product launches with botanicals grew at an
annual average of 8% in the period 2014-2018. And this growth was even greater
between 2017 and 2018: 11%.
According to Innova, Latin America, with 24%, led in terms
of regional growth in botanical applications, followed by Australasia (10%) and
Asia (9%).
And it's not by chance. Due to its high content in
antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, botanicals are strongly associated with
the concepts of health, well-being and naturalness . Plants, fruits and
vegetables are on the rise among consumers of different generations in search
of holistic health.
This upward movement of botanists is confirmed in the trends
signaled by different international market intelligence agencies, such as Power
to the Plants, in Mintel's Global Food & Drink Trend 2019 report; the
Vegetal Kingdom, presented by Top 10 Trends 2019, by Innova Market Insights;
and the Water Period, featured in JWT Intelligence's The Future 100 report.
Multi-properties in evidence
The functional properties of botanists have been
increasingly explored in the most different categories of food and beverages.
To provide mood and energy, calm and relax, provide moments of pleasure and
indulgence, improve mood, ingredients extracted from nature are increasingly
present in different categories of products.
Another extremely interesting potential is the unique flavor
that natural extracts give to products, providing new consumption experiences.
And it's not just that. Botanists are among the growing
options for natural alternatives for coloring products. This is evidenced by
the growing use of spirulina and saffron, the visual appeal they promote, with
vibrant colors of green, yellow and blue.
The industry is also aware of the anti-oxidizing properties
of acerola and rosemary extracts, for example, for application as natural
preservatives in products, mainly in bakery and meat products.
These are highlighted properties that allow exploring
concepts such as clean label (clean label), mood food and naturalness, giving
greater value to new products that reach the shelves.
Diversity of Categories
The Innova Market Insight survey also indicates the
categories that most used botanicals in launches in the 2014-2018 period:
sauces and seasonings, with 20%; followed by ready meals and side dishes, with
14%; snacks, 11%; meat, fish and eggs, 9%; and 9% bakery products.
Another aspect that stands out in the diagnosis made by
Innova: sports nutrition appears as the fastest growing market category in the
use of botanical products, driven by the growth in the botanical supplements
segment, with 25% of CAGR (Global) in 2018 The category of alcoholic beverages
comes right after, with 22%, followed by snacks, with 14%, food for babies and
children (13%) and hot beverages (11%).
In its Trend Total Wellbeing report, Mintel points to the
consumer's growing quest for holistic wellbeing. 51% of Brazilian consumers
surveyed said that taking better care of their health is a top concern for the
next twelve months. And this movement, points out Mintel, opens new
opportunities for brands to explore food and beverages that can increase
productivity throughout the day, with energy, or that can help provide rest and
relaxation at the end of the journey.
Precisely because of these movements, the expectation is
that the use of botanical ingredients in the most different categories of food
and drink will grow even more in the coming years.
Check out, below, a selection of some recent product
launches, identified by Innova and Mintel, which use botanicals in their
formulations.
