This report looks at the following areas:
- The retail sales of the baby nutrition market, along with key growth drivers, obstacles and future trends
- The competitive landscape of infant milk formula and baby supplementary foods
- Noteworthy product innovation trends and marketing highlights
- Consumption penetration rates of baby food and drinks
- Parents’ interest in the key selling points of baby food, drinks and nutrition products
- Perception of hero ingredients in infant milk formula when applied to adult milk powder
Amid a continuously declining birth rate, baby nutrition categories should adopt practical strategies for both in-category and cross-sector growth, tapping into differentiated development opportunities within market segments to drive more efficient growth.
Qianqian Ji, Senior Analyst, China Insights
Market Definitions
The market size discussed in this report covers the following segments:
- Infant milk formula – comprising packaged dry and liquid products specifically designed for babies/infants. The market includes both baby formula (designed for babies up to one year old) and growing-up milk formula (designed for babies/toddlers aged 1-3).
- Baby supplementary foods – comprising packaged dry and liquid products specifically designed for babies/infants (aged 0-3 years) that can be eaten directly from the package or after being prepared (cooked, microwaved, mixed with water or added to meals). They include biscuits/rusks/snacks; cereals; fruit & vegetables; other solids and other drinks (excluding infant milk formula and growing-up milk).
- Baby health supplements – comprising any dietary supplements or nutritional supplements such as minerals, vitamins, fish oils, etc intended for babies.
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Executive summary
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Definition
- What you need to know
- The market
- Refined feeding drives short-term growth in the baby nutrition market, but a low fertility rate may constrain long-term development
- Trends, challenges and opportunities in various market segments
- Companies and brands
- Infant milk formula: foreign brands are overcoming adversity, and in the future, companies will need to strengthen their advantage in high-quality milk sources to consolidate their market influence
- Baby supplementary foods: strengthening presence on online channels and developing new products will be the driving forces for supplementary food brands’ growth
- Products and marketing
- Highlights in marketing activities
- Product innovation to watch
- Product examples reflecting the above views
- The consumer
- Babies’ eating disorders, immunity and gut health have always been a key concern for parents
- Graph 1: concerns about infants’ sub-health issues, 2023 vs 2024
- Another ‘blue ocean’ opportunity in immunity boosting: baby food and drinks that enhance oral immunity are gaining attention
- Graph 2: interest about infant food/drink helping oral/hand-motor development, 2024
- The consumption stickiness of infant formula and rice cereal remains strong, while other supplementary foods need to enhance their advantages in convenience and nutrition to increase penetration
- Graph 3: consumption frequency of infant food/drinks, 2024
- Calcium and probiotics are the nutrients parents focus on most when supplementing their babies
- Graph 4: nutrition replenishment concerns, 2024
- Specialised brands and comprehensive nutritional elements are the most attractive selling points of baby nutrition products for parents
- Graph 5: product/service selling point of infant nutrition, 2024
- If the hero ingredients of infant formula are to be leveraged in the adult milk powder market, benefits such as promoting immunity, gut health, bone/joint support and brain health should be highlighted
- Graph 6: perception of infant milk formula ingredient function in adult milk powder, 2024
- Issues and insights
- What we think
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The market
- Market size and forecast
- The continued decline in birth rate will have a negative impact on the baby nutrition market…
- Graph 7: birth rate (‰), 2014-2023
- Graph 8: plans to have more children, 2019-24
- …given the influence of the overall economic environment, the growth of the baby nutrition market* is expected to slow in 2024
- Graph 9: retail sales of baby nutrition market* (RMB bn), 2020-2024 (est)
- The refined feeding approach will stabilise short-term growth, but low fertility rate may constrain long-term development
- Market segmentation
- The bottleneck of price increases and the challenges posed by a declining birth rate will shape the future of infant milk formula, and brands need to explore new growth opportunities beyond the infant segment
- Graph 10: retail sales of infant milk formula (RMB bn), 2020-2024 (est)
- Baby supplementary foods have rebounded, with nutritious yet convenient baby snacks emerging as the frontrunners
- Graph 11: retail sales of baby supplementary foods (RMB bn), 2020-2024 (est)
- Graph 12: retail sales share of baby supplementary food segments*, 2020-2024 (est)
- In the future, the popularisation of the ‘scientific feeding’ concept will continue to drive the growth of baby supplementary foods
- Thanks to parents’ focus on nutritional supplementation, baby health supplements are expected to maintain strong growth
- Graph 13: retail sales of baby health supplements (RMB bn), 2020-2024 (est)
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Companies and brands
- Market share
- Infant milk formula: thanks to the recovery of supply chains and a diverse product promotion strategy, some foreign brands have defied the odds and turned the tide
- In the future, infant milk formula will need to emphasise high-quality milk sources to sustain brand influence in the market
- Baby supplementary foods: strengthening presence on online channels and developing new products will be the driving forces for supplementary food brands’ growth
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Products and marketing
- Highlights in marketing activities
- Cross-category collaboration between supplementary food and yang sheng tea drinks meets the needs of both babies and mothers
- ‘Edutainment’ cultural marketing replaces the hard-sell approach
- Launch more practical co-branded merchandise to deepen the brand’s presence in everyday life
- Overview of bestselling products in ecommerce
- Infant milk formula: major domestic brands and stage three formulas dominate in volume sales, with ‘high-quality milk source’ and ‘brain development support’ frequently highlighted
- Supplementary food: cereal and snack-type supplementary foods have recorded impressive volume sales. Parents’ emphasis on nutritional reliability is well-addressed by qualities like ‘organic’, ‘nutritionally rich’ and ‘age-specific progression’
- Baby health supplements: ‘calcium, iron and zinc’ are popular on ecommerce, while features such as ‘blue-hat logo certification’, ‘easy absorption’ and ‘good taste’ are also well-loved
- New product trends
- The overall innovation in baby food* is slowing down
- Graph 14: proportion of new product launches in baby food*, 2019-2024
- ‘Nutrient fortified’ remains the mainstream claim, while organic and certain functional claims show a growth trend
- Graph 15: top health-related claims in baby food, 2019-2024
- Formula milk: the share of innovations in infant formula has decreased, while the share of innovations in toddler formula has increased
- Graph 16: share of new products in the infant milk formula/growth milk-related categories, 2019-2024
- Supplementary food: the share of new cereal-based supplementary foods has reached a new high, along with significant growth in the share of new fruit- and yogurt-based supplementary foods
- Graph 17: share of new products in baby snacks and supplementary food categories, 2019-2024
- Examples of new products to watch
- Targeting segmented scenarios helps the ‘boost immunity’ claim stand out from the competition
- Diverse HMO-based formulas help infant milk formulas differentiate themselves
- Emphasise the organic production process to enhance the image of safety and purity in baby food
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The consumer
- Concerns about infants’ sub-health issues
- Eating disorders and low immunity remain the main concerns for babies’ health. In addition, concerns about bloating and allergies have increased significantly
- Graph 18: concerns about infants’ sub-health issues, 2023 vs 2024
- Parents concerned about developmental issues in their babies are more likely to worry about eating disorders
- Graph 19: concerns about eating disorders, by concerns about babies’ health issues, 2024
- Concerns about low immunity and digestive issues often coexist
- Graph 20: concerns about susceptibility to colds/fevers, by concerns about babies’ health issues, 2024
- Parents are most anxious about their babies’ health during the early stages of introducing supplementary foods
- Graph 21: concerns about infants’ sub-health issues, by baby’s age*, 2024
- Consumption frequency of infant food/drinks
- The consumption stickiness of formula milk and rice cereal, both staples in the diet, remains strong
- Graph 22: consumption frequency of infant food/drinks, 2024
- Graph 23: consumption frequency of infant food/drinks – the proportion of respondents who selected ‘more than once a day’, 2023 vs 2024
- The penetration rate of convenience-focused baby supplementary foods has risen
- Graph 24: consumption frequency of infant food/drinks – share of respondents who selected ‘haven’t fed this in the last three months’, 2024
- In addition to convenience and ease, packaged supplementary foods must also establish a nutritional advantage to stand out from homemade options
- Graph 25: the number of types of infant food/drinks consumed at least once daily, 2024
- Interest in infant food/drinks that aid in oral/hand-motor development
- Background: the guide ‘An Exploration of Step-by-Step Feeding for Infants in China’ has invigorated innovation in infant supplementary foods focused on oral health
- Baby food and drinks that promote oral immunity are attracting significant attention…
- Graph 26: interest about infant food/drink helping oral/hand-motor development, 2024
- Graph 27: interest in infant food and drinks that aid in boosting oral immunity, by interest in infant food and drinks that aid in enhancing oral development, 2024
- …and parents concerned about allergies are showing more interest
- Graph 28: interest in infant food and drink products that improve oral immunity, by concerns about infants’ sub-health issues, 2024
- Align with the trend of refined feeding by introducing more age-segmented products targeting oral development
- Graph 29: interest in infant food and drinks that support oral development, by baby’s age*, 2024
- Nutrition replenishment concerns
- Calcium and probiotics are the essential nutrients parents focus on most…
- Graph 30: nutrition replenishment concerns, 2024
- …particularly favoured by parents concerned about immunity and digestive issues
- Graph 31: nutrition replenishment concerns, by concerns about infants’ sub-health issues, 2024
- As parents introduce supplementary foods to their babies, they are paying increasing attention to the diversity of nutrients in their supplementation
- Graph 32: nutrition replenishment concerns – repertoire analysis, by baby’s age, 2024
- Emphasising ‘comprehensive nutrients’ is more appealing to parents introducing supplementary foods, while highlighting ‘fortified with minerals’ resonates more with parents of older infants
- Graph 33: nutrition replenishment concerns, by baby’s age*, 2024
- Product/service selling point of infant nutrition
- ‘Specialised brand’ and ‘wide range of nutrients’ are the most appealing to parents
- Graph 34: product/service selling point of infant nutrition, 2024
- Baby nutrition products that highlight a ‘wide range of nutrients’ are especially appealing to parents concerned about their babies’ development
- Graph 35: product/service selling point of infant nutrition, by concerns about infants’ sub-health issues, 2024
- Leveraging food diversity along with added benefits like cavity prevention and sensory development stimulation appeals to parents of babies at various stages
- Graph 36: product/service selling point of infant nutrition, by interest in infant food/drinks that help oral/hand-motor development, 2024
- Highlight the uniqueness of infant calcium, iron and zinc supplements by emphasising their easy absorption
- Graph 37: product/service selling point of infant nutrition, by nutrition replenishment concerns, 2024
- Retailers can launch featured health supplements under their private label to gain a unique competitive edge
- Graph 38: product/service selling point of infant nutrition, by nutrition replenishment concerns*, 2024
- Perception of infant milk formula ingredient function in adult milk powder
- The hero ingredients of infant milk formula have already established a strong foundation of recognition in adult nutrition, with A2 protein standing out for its anti-ageing properties
- Graph 39: perception of infant milk formula ingredient function in adult milk powder, 2024
- A2 protein can also serve as a hero ingredient in weight-management milk powder targeting adult men
- Graph 40: recognition of the functions of A2 protein from infant formula in adult milk powder, by gender, 2024
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Issues and insights
- Scenario segmentation enables brands to effectively enter the infant oral health market
- The importance of safeguarding oral health throughout the entire life cycle has been emphasised
- Age-segmented products in oral development are becoming a growing trend, yet innovation in the field of oral health remains underexplored…
- …brands can tap into the essential health need for immunity in infants by integrating oral immunity enhancement and innovating for specific, segmented scenarios
- In response to excessive inner heat from drinking formula milk: launch complementary medicine-food homology products to reduce heatiness
- For mouth cleaning scenarios: introduce feeding devices that can clean the mouth and help boost oral immunity
- For allergy scenarios: oral allergy syndrome presents a major communication opportunity for hypoallergenic baby food
- Leverage food diversity as a foundation to broaden the scope of innovation in supplementary foods
- Food diversity is emphasised in baby nutrition standards across various levels
- Brands can spark babies’ interest in a variety of foods through multi-faceted innovations in appearance and taste
- Eliminate the natural unpleasant mouthfeel of food and increase the baby’s willingness to eat
- Introduce exotic flavours to stimulate taste development and help prevent picky eating in the future
- Explore the potential of A2 protein in the adult anti-ageing market
- Aligning with the healthy ageing trend, the adult anti-ageing nutrition sector provides an additional growth opportunity for infant formula brands
- Currently, dairy products featuring A2 protein are primarily targeted at children, but sales of products aimed at adults and older individuals are growing faster
- Targeting the ‘whole-family nutrition’ market: leverage anti-ageing as the core selling point of A2 protein to help young parents maintain their health
- Targeting the middle-aged and elderly market: conduct differentiated communication and product innovation based on the healthy ageing expectations of different genders within this demographic
- Graph 41: recognition of the anti-ageing benefits of A2 protein in adult milk powder, by perception of the benefits of A2 protein in adult milk powder, 2024
- Mintel Spark Inspirations: A2 protein product concepts for middle-aged and elderly people of different genders
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Appendix – market size and forecast, research methodology and abbreviations
- Market size and forecast
- Retail sales share of various market segments
- Methodology
- Abbreviations
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