Top 4 Health Claims That Will Increase Sales
In recent years, eating healthy has been at the forefront of consumers’ minds. The CPG industry has seen a demand boom for healthy snacks due to the growing health concerns tied to snacking and wellbeing. As such, more and more brands are turning beloved childhood snacks into healthy treats and using specific health certifications to increase their sales. As consumers continue to prioritize health attributes during their selection process, food entrepreneurs must look to adding and promoting these types of health claims to capture a greater market share. Here is a list of trending health claims to help you get started.
1. Keto & Low Carb
If you haven’t heard of it already, the ketogenic “keto” diet is a diet that focuses on consuming foods high in fats and low in carbohydrates with a moderate amount of protein. Globally, the ketogenic market share is estimated to be worth $9.57 billion, a number that will continue growing in the upcoming years. Ingredients that are well suited to the ketogenic diet include plant-based sweeteners, MCT oils, grass-fed butter, and nuts. Incorporating these keto-friendly ingredients into your innovative snack lines, such as toaster pastries, cereals, and rice crispies, is a great way for food startups to capitalize on the growing ketogenic market share.
Consumers on keto often look for health claims like “Keto-Friendly,” “Low carb,” or “Ketogenic” on their snack products to ensure that the products they buy are aligned with their nutritional and dietary needs. Brands looking to go a step further should apply for keto-specific certifications (i.e. “Keto-Certified'') to build more trust, bring in more sales, and expand their reach.
2. High Protein
A high protein diet focuses on consuming high levels of protein and low levels of carbohydrates. Although high protein diets often contain meats and animal-based products, those on vegetarian and vegan diets can also enjoy high protein snacks through protein powders and nut butters. With the global protein-based food market size expected to be valued at $91 billion by the end of this year, CPG snack startups should start formulating and developing cookies, protein bars, and baking mixes with high protein ingredients to increase their share in this ever-growing market.
Popular health claims to attract the high protein target market include “High in Protein,” “Good Source of Protein,” and “High-Quality Protein''. Using these claims will help your consumers navigate an extensive selection of products to focus solely on yours and directly show how yours will benefit them.
3. Vegan & Plant-Based
Over the years, one of the most popular diets among consumers has been the vegan diet. Worth $12.69 billion in 2018, it is projected to expand at a 9.6% CAGR due to increased awareness around the benefits of a vegan diet. Brands that want to capture this market should look into using superfoods, plant-based protein powders, and meat and dairy alternatives when manufacturing their snacks.
When shopping for vegan products, consumers typically look for health claims and certifications that say “Vegan,” “Plant-Based,” and “No Animal By-Product.” With so much choice in the market, leveraging these attributes will set your nutritional products apart from the rest and build trust within your consumers.
4. Clean Label
More and more consumers are becoming interested in “Clean Label” products, but what does “Clean Label” mean? Essentially, it implies that a product is made using as few ingredients as possible. Those invested in clean label eating often seek out foods with all-natural, functional, and organic ingredients without any preservatives, synthetic chemicals, or artificial add-ons. The clean label movement is estimated to reach $64 billion by 2026, which means that now is the perfect time for food entrepreneurs like yourself to join.
With this in mind, consumers will look for health claims that advocate the use of clean and pure ingredients. These include, but are not limited to: “Preservative-free,” “Organic Ingredients,” and “Gluten-Free.” Consumers will also look for certifications such as “Certified Organic,” “Non-GMO Project Verified,” and “Gluten-free Certified,” which can boost your nutritional snack’s appeal and market value while building consumer confidence.
Why Are Health Attributes So Important?
Nowadays, consumers are looking more at the health benefits and the labels of the foods they eat. Given this, there are many advantages of capitalizing on health claims when developing your new nutritional snacks:
Expand Your Target Market
Each consumer follows a different diet. Although there is value in finding your niche market, expanding your target market is a part of scaling your business. By playing around with different health claims, you will be able to open up your business to new audiences, capture all types of consumers, and increase revenue in the long term.
Empower Your Customers
Consumers like to make sure that they are making informed decisions, and health claims play a huge role in this decision-making process. In a crowded market space, highlighting important benefits can empower your consumers as they will be able to easily understand how your product will help them achieve their nutritional and health goals.
Increase Sales and Revenue
Aside from helping customers learn about the health benefits of a product, capitalizing on trending attributes can increase sales and improve overall business. According to a study done by MDPI, including health claims on nutritional products was seen to capture consumers' attention and increase consumption.
Key Takeaways
To stay relevant and on the cutting edge in a growing CPG space, food visionaries must focus on creative ways to offer their nutritional products to consumers while following industry trends. Leveraging trending health claims in snacks will be a great opportunity for businesses to increase consumer engagement, brand awareness, and sales. Brands that successfully incorporate the proper health claims onto their products will be able to not only keep consumers informed on how each product aligns with their dietary goals, but also stand out in a saturated market.