The rising emphasis on preventive healthcare and healthy aging is driving a shift toward better eating habits, paving the way for growth in the nutraceuticals market, including functional foods and beverages. This report explores the current landscape and future opportunities within India’s functional food and drink sector.
Familiarity and promise of naturalness can play a key role in motivating the trial of functional products. Further, prioritising protein ingredient communication and showcasing the efficacy of ingredients can boost engagement.
Obesity, diabetes and prediabetes are significant health challenges that call for natural, personalised solutions through food and beverages. This report delves into consumer insights, highlighting current trends, upcoming innovations and future possibilities for managing chronic conditions like these more effectively.
This report looks at the following areas:
- Indian consumers’ attitudes towards functional food & drinks
- The now, next and future of delivering functional food and drinks
- Unlocking trust and differentiation in functional food and drinks through ingredient claims and positioning
- Making functional nutrition a smarter path to weight management
- Diabetes and prediabetes care through functional nutrition
- Showcasing innovations from both global and Indian markets
Natural, familiar ingredients, evolving weight management methods and rising prediabetes concerns are shaping demand for functional foods in India.
Anamika Banerji, Senior Research Analyst – Food and Drink, India
Market Definitions
This report examines the market for functional foods and drinks in India. Functional food/drinks can be defined as food/drink products that are whole, fortified, enriched or enhanced to provide health benefits beyond the provision of essential nutrients (eg vitamins and minerals), when they are consumed at efficacious levels as part of a varied diet on a regular basis.
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- What you need to know
- What is functional food and drink?
- The outlook for the functional food & drink category in India
- Food-as-medicine movement gains grounds in India
- A wide range of health benefits catch the fancy of Indians
- Graph 1: added health benefits of appeal in drinks, 2025
- Graph 2: added health benefits of appeal in food products, 2025
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Unlocking trust and differentiation through ingredients
- Nutrition-forward choices rise, but confusion sets in
- Graph 3: plus, minus and functional claims as a share of total food launches, 2015-25
- Ingredients can simplify the process of choosing products
- Micronutrients, nuts and seeds take centre stage in functional food & drinks
- Graph 4: % of launches of functional food & drinks with select ingredient groups, 2023-25
- Now: functional food and drink must be rooted in naturalness to truly qualify as healthy
- Graph 5: top five factors that would motivate choice of one food/drink with added health benefit(s) over another, 2025
- Natural still signals health, but ‘all-natural product’ claims are declining
- Graph 6: % share of all-natural claim in functional food & drink products, 2020-25
- Now: blend familiarity with a compelling ingredient story
- Graph 7: ‘information on the health benefit of the ingredient’ as a factor that can motivate choice of one food/drink with added health benefit(s) over another, 2025
- Graph 8: ‘familiar ingredients’ as a factor that can motivate choice of one food/drink with added health benefit(s) over another, 2025
- ITC’s Right Shift champions messaging on inherent nutrition and its benefits
- Mintel Spark creates products that champion ingredient communication
- Now: protein emerges as a key functional differentiator
- Now: furnish scientific proof to foster usage
- Now: leverage clinically backed ingredients to strengthen functional credibility
- Next: build trust with transparency and traceability of ingredients
- Future: explore next-generation functional ingredients for smarter and sustainable solutions
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Making functional nutrition a smarter path to weight management
- India’s obesity struggle finds hope in functional foods
- Graph 9: ‘helps in weight loss’ as a benefit of appeal when choosing a food & drink product, 2025
- Graph 10: attitudes to body weight management, 2025
- Now: offer functional products for exercise support and diet control
- Graph 11: preferred ways to lose or maintain weight, 2025
- Now: expand horizons to support active lifestyles
- Now: position permissibility for maintaining weight
- Graph 12: % of launches of food & drinks featuring select minus claims, 2020-25
- Now: upgrade the plate with healthier swaps
- Del Monte Fit ‘n Right engages weight watchers with a bold slimming message
- Ingredient watch: use berberine in modern applications for metabolic health
- Now: the buzz around weight loss drugs is growing
- Now: Indian weight watchers are warming up to weight loss medications
- Graph 13: agreement with select statements about weight loss medication, 2025
- Graph 14: ‘medicines/weight loss injections’ as a preferred way to lose or maintain weight, 2025
- Next: integrate functional foods and drinks into specialised diets for medication users
- Next: meet nutritional needs in small portions
- Next: offer smarter hydration to support the needs of GLP-1 users
- Caution around weight loss drugs creates opportunities for natural, food-based solutions that mimic them
- Graph 15: agreement with select statements about weight loss medicines, by those who wish to maintain/lose weight, 2025
- Caution around weight loss drugs can boost interest in natural, food-based solutions that mimic them
- Next: explore prebiotic fibre ingredients that have GLP-1 drug-like effects
- Next: address the satiety demand gap in food & drink
- Graph 16: % of food and drink launches featuring the high satiety claim, 2020-25
- Next: link satiety to protein and fibre
- Graph 17: % of launches of packaged salty snacks featuring a combination of protein and fibre claims, 2015-25
- Attract the youth with a protein and fibre-first approach in communicating satiety
- Now: offer satiety with the protein and fibre
- Future: leverage the interplay between gut health and weight management
- Future: address the link between stress and body weight
- Future: make personalisation a route to effective weight loss
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Diabetes and prediabetes care through functional nutrition
- Rising diabetes concerns create a demand for low-glycemic food/drinks
- Graph 18: agreement with the statement “I am concerned about developing/managing diabetes”, 2025
- Graph 19: agreement with the statement “I am interested in food/drink products that help manage blood glucose levels”, 2025
- Harness the power of fibre-rich ingredients and alternate sweeteners to lower glycemic index
- Now: make everyday food and drinks accessible for sugar watchers
- Brands are rethinking rice for glycemic control
- Now: innovate with portable fibre blends that target blood sugar management
- Case study: Diabexy talks about lowering glycemic load
- Now: chromium gains traction as a blood sugar support ingredient
- The prediabetic condition is grabbing the attention of younger Indians
- Next: expand into prediabetes management and prevention
- Graph 20: agreement with the statement “I am concerned about developing/managing a pre-diabetic condition”, 2025
- Next: take ingredient and messaging cues from supplements for prediabetes care
- Next: turn proven efficacy into premium opportunities
- Graph 21: agreement with the statement “I am willing to pay a premium for a food/drink clinically proven to help manage diabetes”, 2025
- Global inspirations: providing clinical claims in mainstream food & drinks
- Next: smarter blood glucose monitors will call for food/drink that supports ‘spike’ management
- Future: leverage chrono-nutrition for diabetes care
- Future: prioritise pancreatic health in the early years of life to reduce diabetes risk in later life
- Key takeaways
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APPENDIX
- Report definition
- Consumer survey methodology
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