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Here, we recap the key takeaways from our MegaTrends webinar, which examines the food and beverage trends for 2025 and how they can impact new product innovation.
As food and beverage trends evolve, brands that respond quickly can achieve enormous success. Our MegaTrends webinar, summarized here, provides the timely insights companies need to address consumer pain points, provide value and enjoyment, and make consumers feel heard.
Consuming your way to the perfect state of holistic wellness
The drive toward optimal health is strong among today’s consumers, whose proactive attitude has them reaching for food, beverage, and supplement solutions. While about half of supplement use occasions are for a nutritional top-up (24%) or to treat a health condition (23%),1 traditional supplements aren’t the solution for everyone.
“Consumers are taking greater control over their health—and expect companies to provide effective, science-backed solutions.” —McKinsey & Company, Future of Wellness, 2024
One in four US consumers (one in three of 18- —to 25-year-olds) finds supplements confusing, and this correlates to non-use.2 Simpler, clearer health hacking measures are having their moment. Drink mixes like MUD/WTR and Bloom Greens & Superfoods are particularly intuitive for consumers.
The new metrics of health & vitality
As more consumers take stock of their health needs, we’re seeing hydration as a new focus area, with half of US consumers believing hydration is vital to their health. 3 For many, though, plain water simply isn’t appealing. 44% have not consumed plain still water in the past three months, and 35% drink water only out of necessity, with no enjoyment.4
Ready-to-mix hydration products (especially stick packs), whether science-based or naturally formulated, fill the gap, with huge opportunities in hydration plus (with functional ingredients) and flavour innovation. While overall, most hydration-driven beverage occasions are to quench thirst, proactive hydration is extremely common among Gen Z.5
| Generation | % Beverage Use Occasions Motivated by Hydration | Breakdown | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proactive Hydration | Reactive Hydration | ||
| Gen Z | 29% | 15% | 14% |
| Millennials | 24% | 10% | 15% |
| Gen X | 23% | 7% | 16% |
| Boomers | 27% | 5% | 22% |
Performance is where personalization takes root
Another important food and beverage trend is consumers’ expanding perceptions of protein uses, fueling more growth in protein-fortified products. When consumers choose protein, the motivation is personalized in a way we haven’t seen before.
Top Reasons Consumers Ensure They Eat Protein
Source: Innova Trends Survey (11 countries), 2024.
Besides energy, weight management, immunity, healthy aging, muscle building, and so on, protein has become relevant to new conversations around longevity and preventing muscle loss during weight loss with anti-obesity medications. Many brands link protein source with positioning—for example, whey protein for muscle building and plant-based protein for holistic health.
Giving consumers a choice about what feels genuine to them
Authenticity is a MegaTrend that keeps showing up in new ways. What we’re seeing in food and beverage now is consumers shifting away from a hardline stance on clean label toward assessing if a brand is genuinely making an effort.
Cleaner labels, whether this stems from the presence of natural or plant-based ingredients, claims of being free from additives and preservatives, or the brand’s sustainability story, are the signal they’re looking for. While we expect consumers will want more natural and sustainable products over time, right now, they are making their own choices based on what feels authentic.
Collaboration is an extremely effective tool
While health and wellness may be the main theme of this year’s food and beverage trends, we cannot underestimate the importance of flavour in differentiating a brand and exciting consumers. Especially in categories such as protein bars and powders, where traditional indulgent flavours (particularly single flavours like chocolate, vanilla, and caramel) are the standard.
Sports nutrition brand Ryse illustrates the power of flavour collaboration in generating buzz and boosting sales. Ryse Loaded Protein drink mixes posted a huge increase in sales within a month of launching their first flavour collaborations, which have included over the past two years a variety of Little Debbie, Skippy, Kool-Aid, Bazooka, Jet-Puffed, and Smarties flavours.
Considering these food and beverage trends will give brands new opportunities to connect with consumers and address the gaps through product innovation. With consumers taking more control over their health, brands can look at simplified nutrition, reimagining hydration, protein-enhanced formats, cleaner labels, and brand collaborations to stay relevant.
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