Lisa Kelly, Sales Executive, Food Ingredients, examines the market for functional and flavoured water.
These days for food producers to capture the attention of consumers they need to consistently innovate and offer exciting product offerings. In particular this can be seen in the soft drink industry, were in the past it was enough to simply update the branding and packaging. Now soft drink manufacturers are expected to release versions of their products that have either have reduced or zero sugar content as well as exciting and wild flavours. One example of this is Coca-Cola Ireland’s recent campaign entitled #WhatTheFanta, this features the release of a bright blue zero sugar Fanta in which consumers have to guess the flavour. This largely ties into the Fanta market demographic; children, teens and young adults who seek bright coloured and bold flavoured drinks.
The water market
In the bottle water segment however, the market is somewhat different but the demand for innovation is still very much part of what drives sales. The COVID pandemic among other challenges in the market has impacted things significantly. To be clear the bottled water market globally was in decline prior to the pandemic. A combination of an over-saturated marketplace along with the growth of consumers using reusable bottles meant that they were less lightly to purchase bottled water, the pandemic simply increased the speed of the decline. Reflecting this, Nestle recently sold its underperforming US water brands to two private equity firms whilst retaining their portfolio of premium water brands. Interestingly, they purchased a functional water brand a few weeks following the sale.
Consumers want water but with added benefits
It is no longer enough for bottle water to be just water, Nestle understand that consumers want something that is more than water, they want a premium functional water drink with added benefits. The market for flavoured and functional water has increased globally for the last few years, going from a niche product to mass acceptance. According to research published by Technavio, from 2018 till 2022 it is predicated that the global functional water market will grow at a CAGR of close to 9%.
Consumers in particular are resonating with waters that are fortified with minerals, vitamins and other elements such as electrolytes. In terms of flavouring, buyers are seeking waters that are very much on trend and are exciting. For producers in the functional and flavoured water market, we believe it will be essential to release new flavours and types of functional water into the market on a sustained basis. Doing so will enable them to to continue to ride the wave of growth in this developing segment.
Require assistance with developing a functional and flavoured water?
If you are looking to source flavours or ingredients to fortify your water products, then we can assist. We have experience and expertise in developing functional as well as flavoured water products. Our flavour partner, Expressions Aromatiques, have been producing tailor made flavour solutions for customers since 1999 at their dedicated research and development production facilities in France. They have significant experience in the development of flavour solutions across a broad spectrum of sectors. All flavours are tailor made and developed in collaboration with your company, ensuring that your specific requirements are met. Want to know how NCC Food Ingredients can assist your company? Fill out the form below.
