This report looks at the following areas:
- The future outlook and growth prospects of the Chinese plant-protein drinks market
- China’s plant-protein drinks market landscape and changes
- Noteworthy new product trends and directions of innovation
- Trends in the consumption of plant-protein drinks and changes in consumption occasions
- Motivations for drinking plant-protein drinks and key value factors
- Promising directions for plant-protein variants
Brands can prioritise strengthening protein content, creating a richer mouthfeel, communicating organic attributes and integrating Chinese nourishing concepts to enhance the perceived value and market appeal of plant-protein drinks.
Rika Huang, Senior Analyst, China Insights
Market Definitions
This report discusses a variety of plant-based drinks, including soy-, rice-, nut- (eg peanut and almond), grain- (eg oats, quinoa, and corn), seed- (eg flaxseed and chia seeds) and coconut-based drinks. Packaged in bottles, cans, tubs, cartons, flexible packaging and stand-up pouches, these beverages are available in family packs, individual portions and multipacks.
The market size covers sales through retail channels only. Some plant-protein drinks feature cow’s milk as an additional, but not as a main or majority ingredient, and these are included in the market size. Flavoured plant-protein drinks, such as those with berries or fruit as an additional but not majority ingredient, are included in the market size.
Excluded:
Market size does not include unpackaged goods.
Subgroup definitions:
- Frequent users refer to consumers who drink plant-protein drinks more than twice a week
- Infrequent users refer to consumers who drink plant-protein drinks 1-3 times a month
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Executive summary
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Definition
- What you need to know
- The growth rate of the plant-protein drinks market has slowed compared to 2023, and it is expected to flatten
- New product trends
- Consumer trends
- Keys to success
- What we think
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The market
- Market size and forecast
- The growth of the plant-protein drinks market has significantly slowed compared to 2023, but nutrition and functional enhancement are expected to drive future growth
- Soy and apricot kernel milk continue to grow in market share, while walnut-based drinks decline further
- Market factors
- The willingness to trade up continues to decline
- Graph 1: trading up and down – plant-based drinks, 2023-24
- The overall growth rate of foodservice revenue has slowed down, but growth potential can still be seen in on-premise beverage channels
- Graph 2: consumption occasions, 2023
- Product innovation has slightly slowed down, with varieties and range extension becoming the main direction
- Graph 3: new ready-to-drink plant-protein drinks, by type of new products, 2025
- Mixed protein drinks usher in a new national standard, hinting at more intense protein race
- ‘Intake more milk and soybeans’ is featured by dietary guidelines, benefiting soy-based drinks
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Companies and brands
- Market share
- As Six Walnuts loses momentum, the market becomes increasingly fragmented
- Cheng De Lolo’s diversification has a long way to go, but Viee’s strategic investment may drive its popularisation in China
- Oatly successfully stopped the decline, further penetrating coffee culture through product innovation
- New product trends
- Significant growth in innovation in soy and nut bases
- Graph 4: share of new launches of ready-to-drink plant-based dairy alternatives, by base ingredient, 2022-25
- New soy milk products improve their taste through process upgrades
- Nut-based products support consumers’ nutrition intake with their positioning as a daily source of nutrients
- Private labels explore a wide range of bases
- Overview of flavour innovation: the rise of Chinese flavours and more differentiated traditional flavours
- Flavourscape AI: methodology
- Five blacks, five reds: a concept gaining popularity and achieving impressive volume growth
- Minus claims are the most common, with active innovation seen in naturalness
- Graph 5: new launches of plant-based dairy alternatives, by selected claims, 2022-25
- Graph 6: new launches of ready-to-drink plant-based dairy alternatives, by selected minus claims, 2022-25
- Examples of innovative products with minus claims
- Innovation in digestive health and antioxidant new products drives growth in functional new products
- Graph 7: new launches of plant-based dairy alternatives, by functional claims, 2022-25
- Examples of innovative products with functional claims
- GMO-free and minus/plus-related innovations drive the increase of new products featuring naturalness
- Graph 8: new launches of ready-to-drink plant-based dairy alternatives, by natural claims, 2022-25
- Examples of innovative products with natural attributes
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The consumer
- Plant-protein drinks are becoming a part of everyday life, with growing popularity in workout occasions
- Coconut and soy maintain leading penetration rates, while demand for oat milk is flattening out
- Graph 9: penetration of plant-protein drinks, by category, 2023-25
- Plant-protein drinks are integrating into everyday life, with breakfast occasions supporting growth in frequent users of soy and oat milk
- Graph 10: % of heavy users* of plant-protein drinks, by category, 2023-25
- Nuts and kernels are highly popular and may impact further growth in nut milk consumption
- Graph 11: % of heavy users* of freshly made and homemade plant-protein drinks, by category, 2023-25
- Graph 12: consumer behaviour – foods (oats/soya/nuts) vs plant-protein drinks, 2025
- Almond milk and freshly made plant-protein drinks are leading growth in the proportion of frequent users
- Graph 13: % of heavy users* of freshly made and homemade plant-protein drinks, by category, 2023-25
- Freshly made and packaged plant-protein drinks are not in direct competition
- Graph 14: heavy users of plant-protein drinks, by category, 2025
- Breakfast is the key consumption occasion for soy and oat drinks, while nut and coconut drinks are more closely associated with leisure
- Graph 15: consumption occasions, 2025
- Active lifestyles drive the popularity of workout occasions
- Graph 16: consumption occasions – before or after workouts, by category, 2023-25
- High-protein innovation is a must, and flavour, naturalness and reduced sugar are non-negotiable
- Nutritional supplementation and good taste remain the core motivations for consumption
- Graph 17: motivations for drinking plant-protein drinks, 2025
- Plant protein supplements have gained attention, with protein content becoming a key competitive factor
- Graph 18: consumer behaviours – plant protein vs animal protein, 2025
- Plant-based protein drinks still have room to improve protein content
- High protein content has emerged as the leading premiumisation driver, with texture innovation taking precedence over novel flavours
- Graph 19: added-value factors, 2023 vs 2025
- The importance of naturalness is rising, and sugar reduction is prioritised over fat reduction
- Graph 20: added-value factors, 2023 vs 2025
- Strategically develop well-rounded products to reach a wider consumer base
- Awareness of lactose intolerance is limited, but anti-inflammatory benefits and lower likelihood of triggering acne can promote a healthy image
- Substitution behaviours should not be overlooked
- Graph 21: frequency of food behaviours – limiting dairy intake, 2023
- Communicate anti-inflammatory and non-acnegenic benefits to drive substitution
- Graph 22: dairy substitution, by attitudes towards plant-protein drinks vs milk, 2025
- Graph 23: consumer behaviour – milk vs plant-protein drinks, 2025
- Lactose intolerance may not be a major issue
- Graph 24: motivations for drinking plant-protein drinks – lactose intolerance, by consumer behaviour, 2025
- Graph 25: motivations for drinking plant-protein drinks, 2025
- Go beyond conventional combinations to create a sense of freshness, and focus on new opportunities brought by TCM
- Beyond dairy, coconut and oat milks are well-suited for blending with a variety of drinks
- Graph 26: blurred drink preferences, 2025
- Consumers show limited imagination for blended drinks, but breaking away from conventional combinations holds potential
- Graph 27: repertoire of blurred drink preferences, by drink category, 2025
- Blurred beverages based on TCM concepts are highly popular
- Graph 28: innovative plant-based products, 2025
- Women and high earners are more keen on innovative products
- Graph 29: repertoire of innovative plant-based products chosen, by gender and monthly household income, 2025
- Innovative plant-based products help to further attract infrequent users
- Graph 30: repertoire of innovative plant-based products chosen, by infrequent users of select plant-protein drinks, 2025
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ISSUES AND INSIGHTS
- Boost the nourishing appeal of products through colour and craftsmanship
- Develop other wellness-related colours beyond ‘reds’ and ‘blacks’
- Build a colourful, wellness-oriented product portfolio
- Highlight traditional craftsmanship to build an image of artisanal quality
- Harness natural richness to balance health and taste
- Consumers prefer a naturally rich mouthfeel without added thickeners
- Naturally occurring starches from legumes help deliver a thick, rich mouthfeel
- Boosting protein content adds both richness and nutritional value
- Enhance perceived product value with credible organic claims
- Innovation in organic plant-protein drinks lags behind consumer expectations
- Graph 31: consumers buying organic in the past week, 2024
- Communicating growing conditions, official certification and natural cultivation can better support premium pricing
- Graph 32: claims of interest in organic foods, 2025
- Examples of products that communicate organic attributes
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Appendix – market size and forecast, methodology and abbreviations
- Market size and forecast
- Methodology
- Abbreviations
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