2026
8
Germany Attitudes towards Sports Nutrition Consumer Report 2026
2026-03-30T16:15:46+00:00
REP05EB5042_DA7B_4A30_BFBB_AF0BA7F19A70
2195
192301
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Report
en_GB
Germans' health and self-care prioritise act as protective factors for sports nutrition, keeping spend resilient and growth strong. Despite ongoing price pressure, sports nutrition usage is expanding faster than the…
Germany
Specialised Nutrition
Consumer Attitudes
simple

Germany Attitudes towards Sports Nutrition Consumer Report 2026

"Usage of sports nutrition products is growing faster than exercise participation. To extend value perceptions, adapt to training needs beyond muscle growth, such as stress relief or athletic abilities."

Hannah Sandow, Associate Director - Food & Drink, Germany

Hannah Sandow, Associate Director - Food & Drink, Germany

Germans’ health and self-care prioritise act as protective factors for sports nutrition, keeping spend resilient and growth strong. Despite ongoing price pressure, sports nutrition usage is expanding faster than the share of Germans exercising regularly.

This highlights the increasing value exercisers put on sports nutrition, moving beyond just sports-driven use. 66% of category users think sports nutrition products have benefits beyond exercise support, but only 21% have used performance nutrition during occasions not related to sports.

Avoidance of UFPs is high on Germans’ agenda,  and a greater commitment to balanced diets is eroding the perceived need for sports nutrition. Combined with the category’s artificial perception, these factors represent a key barrier to use and wider implementation into everyday occasions. The issue is made worse by performance nutrtion launches with natural claims falling from 29% in 2023 to 19% in 2025  .

At the same time, strong interest in performance nutrition that supports immune or bone/joint health highlights clear functional gaps, with claim penetration far behind demand. Closing these gaps – particularly in a protein-saturated landscape – offers the most immediate opportunity to differentiate and attract new users.

This Report Looks at the Following Areas:

  • Usage of sports nutrition, depicting growth due to greater exercise frequency and improved value perceptions
  • Dominance of protein products in sports nutrition, discussing opportunities to differentiate in an increasingly crowded innovation landscape
  • Usage occasions for sports nutrition, being highly sport-specific despite Germans recognising performance nutrition’s wider relevance
  • Interest in sports nutrition with selected features, looking beyond muscle growth towards protein composition, digestibility and wider health benefits
  • Behaviours towards sports nutrition, addressing demand for personalised products, progress-focused offerings and injury prevention
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  1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

    • What you need to know
    • Outlook for sports nutrition
    • Opportunities
    • Stay agile to meet diverse training needs and rising demand for personalisation
    • Time to move beyond protein quantity
    • Progress over performance: dropping ambition can build everyday relevance
  2. THE MARKET

    • Health priorities are high…
    • …helping to cushion sports nutrition spend
    • Broader healthy eating increases selectivity for sports nutrition
    • Slight uptick in weekly exercising as sports participation remains level
    • Exercise participation is on the rise, but a wealth gap remains
    • Technology redefines pursuits of health and fitness
    • Younger Germans’ digital habits shape how fitness information is accessed
    • Graph 1: behaviours towards health management trends, 2025
  3. THE CONSUMER

    • Sports nutrition usage in Germany is growing
    • Use of sports nutrition is becoming a more regular occasion
    • Improving value perceptions boost growth of sports nutrition
    • Convenience remains key to standing out among high-protein claims
    • Graph 2: usage of sports nutrition products, 2025
    • Evolving training styles open opportunities for wider sports nutrition repertoires
    • Electrolytes can demonstrate added value
    • Graph 3: launch activity of non-alcoholic drink launches calling out electrolytes, 2021-25
    • Building everyday relevance for sports nutrition
    • Sports nutrition is still exercise-led despite recognition of wider relevance
    • Credibility is key when targeting wider consumption occasions
    • Dial up flavour and texture appeal with inspiration from wider food & drink trends to reach young non-users
    • Drop in natural claims despite rising clean label expectations
    • Anchor sports nutrition with culinary terms for a cleaner image
    • Going beyond protein
    • Protein goals are transcending quantity
    • Immune and bone & joint health top the list of interests for sports nutrition users and non-users alike
    • Graph 4: interest in sports nutrition with selected attributes, by usage of sports nutrition and exercise participation, 2025
    • Focus on prevention to widen user base
    • Soften sports nutrition’s ambition to focus on habitual progress
    • Demand for personalised sports nutrition peaks among young Germans
    • Anchor personalisation in exercise motivation
  4. PRODUCT, INNOVATION AND MARKETING

    • Performance nutrition launch activity needs a further push to get back to old heights
    • Graph 5: performance nutrition launches, 2015-25
    • Sports nutrition moves into everyday snacking
    • Suitability claims require renewed attention
    • Crowded protein space drives the need for sharper differentiation
    • Performance nutrition moves beyond high-protein claims to refocus on vitamin and mineral fortification
    • Functional claims underserve key consumer interests
    • Graph 6: consumer interest in sports nutrition with selected features vs performance nutrition launches with selected functional claims, 2025
    • Fibre claims are on the decline but could support gut health positioning
  5. APPENDIX

    • Report scope
    • The consumer
    • Consumer research questions
    • Consumer research methodology
    • Germany generation groups
    • Other data source methodologies
    • Mintel Spark
    • Abbreviations
    • A note on language – Germany

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