Incorporating fruits, vegetables and high-fibre foods is essential for a healthy diet. While probiotics are well-known, prebiotics require more focus. Our Report highlights these vital components, offering insights valuable for food and drink product innovations in gut health.
The report notes a generational gap: Gen X sees gut health as key to longevity, while Gen Z often overlooks its benefits. This is an opportunity to engage younger consumers by linking gut health to their lifestyle interests. Brands can attract this group by focusing on cognition, sleep and weight management.
Additionally, the Report explores perceptions of gut-friendliness across food and drink categories, providing a roadmap for brands to enhance competitiveness by positioning as gut health allies. Read the Report to discover strategic insights for navigating and innovating within this dynamic market.
Expand on gut axis associations with a focus on cognition, sleep and weight management. Engage Gen Z while addressing the negative effects of ultra-processed foods on gut health.
Rashmika Khanijou, Senior Analyst
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- Mintel’s perspective
- Key issues covered in this Report:
- Overview
- The outlook for food and drinks for gut health in Thailand
- The pursuit for healthy living and healthy ageing
- Expand gut-axis associations to drive innovative gut health solutions
- Graph 1: benefits that consumers believe a good gut can bring beyond digestion, 2024
- The time is right for Gen Z’s gut health awakening
- Graph 2: select ‘I am interested in consuming food and drinks that can improve my gut health’, by age group, 2024
- Enhance the gut-friendliness of products by incorporating gut-friendly ingredients
- Graph 3: association of food and drink categories with ‘gut friendly’, 2024
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key trends
- What you need to know
- The pursuit for healthy ageing
- Thai consumers are embracing ageing, driving preventive care
- Social media conversations around ‘healthy ageing’ peaked in the past year in Thailand
- Emerging research highlights the importance of gut health for healthy ageing
- Gut health is trending in the realm of consumers’ wellness journeys, with a spotlight on biotics and natural foods
- Embracing the biotics boom
- Graph 4: share of gut health-focused food and drinks, by claims, 2019-24
- Addressing weight issues: the emergence of a 360-degree management approach
- Malnutrition is a global issue
- Gut health emerges as a holistic aid for weight management, addressing the urgent need for Thais to shed excess weight
- Thais embrace long-term lifestyle changes over specialised solutions for weight management
- Graph 5: weight improvement actions and aspirations, 2024
- Global specialised nutrition brands are driving a gut-centric, nutrition-led approach towards weight management
- Global food brands formulate with fibre for weight management by regulating the gut
- Glucomannan is being used to enhance satiety in weight loss drinks
- Awareness and scrutiny of ultra-processing
- The relationship between ultra-processed foods and gut microbiome health is coming into the spotlight
- Brands are adding microbiome-friendly probiotics to categories with an ultra-processed image
- Brands are trying to put back what is lost during ‘ultra-processing’ to deliver gut-friendly, nutrient-dense processed foods
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what consumers want and why
- What you need to know
- The foundation
- Thai consumers’ natural approach to gut health drives industry innovation
- Graph 6: actions taken to improve gut and digestion health, 2024
- Added fruits/vegetables and high/added fibre are established foundations for a good gut
- Yogurts need to continue establishing stronger gut-friendly positioning
- While probiotics are well-known, prebiotics remain the overlooked powerhouse for gut health
- Graph 7: top five features that consumers think is good for gut health, 2024
- The knowledge gap: postbiotics to complete the gut-health journey
- Graph 8: select features that consumers think is good for gut health, 2024
- Expand on gut-axis associations
- Gen X sees gut health as key to longevity, while Gen Z are missing the long-term connection
- Graph 9: agreement with select statements about gut health, by generation, 2024
- Brands can educate Thais on the wide spectrum of gut-related benefits to enhance health values
- Graph 10: benefits that consumers believe a good gut can bring beyond digestion, 2024
- Gen Zs are overlooking the wide spectrum of gut-related benefits
- Graph 11: health benefits consumers believe a good gut can bring beyond digestion, by generation, 2024
- Quick win no. 1: target Gen X with a gut-centric approach to sleep support
- Graph 12: consumers that have not taken but are interested in trying functional food/drinks with select benefits, by generation, 2024
- Superfood smoothies can support the gut-sleep connection
- Position products as a versatile sleep-supporting solution that works by modulating the gut
- Quick win no. 2: tap into the market’s diet barriers to weight management
- Graph 13: perceived barriers to weight management, 2024
- Tackle weight issues, specifically among women aged 35-44, through gut support
- Graph 14: consumers selecting being ‘overweight’ as a current health issue, 2024
- Help manage weight through nutrition for satiety
- Support GLP-1 use for a gut-centric approach to weight management
- Exploring opportunities in gut-axis associations
- Graph 15: market gaps and opportunities in associating gut health with other health benefits, 2024
- The key market gap: gut health for cognition
- Support cognitive functions through the gut for healthy ageing
- Soda that reaches the gut and enhances immune and brain health
- Captivate Gen Z with gut-healthy foods and drinks
- Capture Gen Z’s interest in gut-friendly products for long-term market sustainability
- Graph 16: interest in consuming food and drinks that can improve gut health, by age group, 2024
- Educate Gen Z on the importance of gut health for overall wellbeing: ‘your gut is where it all begins’
- Recognise the irregular eating habits of Gen Z and provide gut-health solutions to help them cope with the health impacts
- Graph 17: select ‘irregular meal time’ as a current living habit, by generation, 2024
- Provide a quick fix for poor eating habits
- Cater to time-of-day dietary needs with chrono-nutrition options
- Offer easy-to-consume drink mixtures that fill nutritional gaps from irregular meal timings
- Highlight the importance of gut health for Gen Z women by linking it to their immediate health priority: beauty enhancement
- Graph 18: select ‘have taken and will take again’ functional food/drinks for beauty benefits, by gender and age, 2024
- Champion gut health as a hero against Gen Z women’s greatest beauty enemy: stress!
- Extend into the mental health challenges commonly faced by Gen Z
- Graph 19: consumers that select ‘anxiety/depression’ as a health issue they currently have, by generation, 2024
- Psychobiotics is the new frontier for nutritional psychiatry
- Educate younger consumers with on-pack info on how prebiotic fibre can regulate mood, energy levels and appetite
- Offer gut-friendly solutions for Gen Z women pursuing beauty remedies to alleviate unhealthy diets
- Graph 20: select factor ‘unhealthy diet/food habits’ that consumers think is affecting overall appearance, by gender and age, 2024
- Combat young women’s unhealthy diets with detox innovations: inside-out beauty
- Help Gen Z consumers discover how gut health innovations can help balance hormones and transform their skin
- Graph 21: select ‘hormones’ as a factor that consumers think are affecting overall appearance, by gender and age, 2024
- Formulate snack foods for hormonal balance to fuel holistic health
- Formulate and position for hormone balancing and create a link with beauty benefits
- Support internal balance and hormonal regulation with gut support to help women look and feel their best
- Enhance the gut-friendliness of food & drink categories
- Benefiting from the healthy reputation of fruits and vegetables, plant-based foods are strongly linked to gut-health-friendliness
- Graph 22: association of food and drink categories with extent of gut-friendliness, 2024
- There is room to build gut-friendly edge of dairy products amidst the rise of milk alternatives
- Graph 23: perceived gut-friendliness of select categories, 2024
- Increased use of biotics, fibre and functional digestive claims could boost dairy milk’s competitiveness
- Graph 24: share of product launches in the sub-categories of dairy, by select gut-friendly claims, 2021-24
- Elevate the gut-friendly profile of regular non-cultured whole milk by fortifying it with probiotics that boost the microbiome
- Tea vs coffee: tea tends to be favoured, especially among younger consumers
- Graph 25: select ‘gut-friendly’ tea and coffee, by generation, 2024
- Coffee can highlight the ‘daily’ gut-boosting benefit of formulations
- Although niche, Thai hot tea and coffee have made attempts at gut-friendly positioning, while RTD tea and coffee are lagging behind
- Graph 26: share of product launches in tea and coffee categories, by select gut-friendly claims, 2021-24
- The minimally tapped space: RTD tea and coffee with prebiotics
- Allude to coffee’s gut health benefits via combinations with well-known gut health boosters
- Ultra-processed categories are in gut trouble: processed meat, ready meals and salty snacks
- Graph 27: perceived gut-friendliness of select categories, 2024
- Formulate snacks with features known to be good for the gut in the eyes of Thais: veggies and added fibre
- A risk in carbonated soft drinks – highest beverage penetration with a weak gut association
- Graph 28: perceived gut-friendliness of ‘carbonated soft drinks’, 2024
- Pre-, pro- and postbiotics are taking centre stage in gut-friendly soda launches
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appendix
- Consumer research methodology
- TURF analysis
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