Australia embraces healthy drinks and snacks: Report
According to a report on Confectionary and Beverage Wholesaling in Australia by research firm IBISWorld, new types of soft drinks, energy drinks and sports drinks are primarily driving growth in the beverage segment.
Also driving growth are new products within the traditional carbonated soft drink market such as diet soft drinks like Coca-Cola Zero, the report suggested.
“Traditional non-diet carbonated soft drinks sales are flat and in some cases falling, as they are considered unhealthy,” the report said, adding that energy drinks and sports drinks are small but growing product segments.
“Energy drinks help people get through their day, while the demand for sports drinks reflect the trend towards health consciousness,” the report said.
Confectionery health consciousness
A similar healthy trend is being noticed in confectionary, the report pointed out, with the highest growth coming from chewing gum and mints.
“Growth in chewing gum is being driven by sugar-free gum and mints that target consumer concerns about dental health, boosted by new flavours of sugar-free gum,” the report said.
The chewing gum segment is forecast to outperform chocolate and sugar confectionery in sales growth over the next five years.
“This trend reflects underlying changes in consumption patterns as consumers shift from traditional confectionery products towards functional or fortified food and healthy snack foods,” the report said.
The chewing gum segment is being boosted by the ongoing production of gum products linked to dental health benefits, the report added.
The report said that chip sales have been declining at a marginal rate, while nut sales have been increasing due to healthy links.
“Growth in the segment has been boosted by product innovation such as low-fat gourmet flavours,” the report said.
