The brand new insight report that not only illuminates the landscape of a lucrative and challenging market – but identifies the best opportunities and strategies within the industry.
What are functional drinks? Functional drinks are beverages that have a beneficial effect on the body beyond basic nutrition and hydration. Health claims can be both general and specific, for instance a drink may claim a general benefit – such as boosting happiness – or something more measurable – such as improving digestive function. They can be measured based on how they meet various consumer need states, with a spectrum that ranges from products that are less ‘bad’ for consumers than other offerings to those which offer specific and measurable medical benefits.
In Europe, the number of approved health claims in food is extremely low, making Europe a hard market for manufacturers, but also an important one, as it provides a gold standard test for health claims. Japan is at the other end of the scale with five times as many approvals than the whole of Europe – making Japan an excellent test market that stands out amongst developed countries for innovative, new products.
The difference: