For the most up-to-date market research on the sports nutrition in the UK, take a look at Mintel’s newly published UK Attitudes Towards Sports Nutrition Market Report 2025
The UK Attitudes Towards Sports Nutrition Market Report examines consumers’ purchasing habits and frequency of use of sport nutrition products, launch activity and the impact of the cost of living crisis on the sports nutrition market.
Sports Nutrition Market Overview
The UK sports nutrition market has seen growth in recent years, however, the current cost of living crisis has caused many consumers to view these products as non-essential, leading to a decline in frequency of usage in 2022. This has led to a need for greater attention from the sports nutrition market and mainstream brands to explore brand collaborations, with 55% of sports nutrition users viewing such collaborations as appealing. As more consumers see their finances come under pressure, commitment to certain health promoting habits will ebb.
Sports Nutrition Market Trends and Consumer Behaviours
Usage of food and drink tailored for sport and exercise is driven by exercise participation, with almost half of consumers who have exercised having consumed a sports nutrition product in the last three months. Most sports nutrition brands focus on high-intensity forms of exercise in their advertising despite low-impact workouts like walking being the most popular form of exercise. This disconnect between brand positioning and consumer behaviour leaves a sizeable pool of potential users underserved in the sports nutrition market.
The ageing of the population poses a notable challenge for the sports nutrition market growth, with usage falling from 73% of 16-24s to just 14% of over-55s. This comes despite three quarters of consumers of this age exercising. This disengage between exercise participation and sports nutrition usage suggests that more can be done to entice the aging population with the sports nutrition market.
- Sports nutrition consumer behaviours: 37% of consumers agree that there should be more age-specific sports nutrition products, e.g. young adults and seniors.
- Sports nutrition market challenges: 64% of sports nutrition users are likely to buy fewer products in order to save money.
Future Opportunities in the Sports Nutrition Market
In the longer-term, rising real incomes will support demand for sports nutrition products. The sports nutrition market will continue to face competition from mainstream high-protein products, however, the interest in products tailored for lower intensity exercise points to growth potential.
Driving relevancy among older consumers is also key to expanding the horizons of the sports nutrition market. There is growing curiosity in age-specific products, with 58% of sports nutrition uses over the age of 55 expressing interest in age-inclusive products. Sports nutrition brands should focus on the key benefits a product offers for different age group, drawing on themes of healthy aging and key interest like brain health.
To discover more about the UK Attitudes Towards Sports Nutrition Market Report 2022, read The Future of Nutrition, Health and Wellness Report 2023, or take a look at our other Sports and Energy Drinks Market Research.
Quickly Understand
- The impact of the cost of living crisis on the sports nutrition market.
- Usage of different types of sports nutrition products, and frequency of usage.
- Key trends in new launch activity in the sports nutrition market.
- Behaviours related to using and buying sports nutrition products, including the potential to engage users with tailored approaches.
- Attitudes towards using and buying sports nutrition products, including interest in age inclusivity.
- Explores the sports nutrition market size and share.
Covered in D30this Report
Brands: Grenade (Mondel?z), UFIT, For Goodness Shakes (Aurivo) FULFIL (Ferrero Group), SiS (Science in Sport, PhD), Gold Standard Optimum Nutrition (GPN), USN (Ultimate Sports Nutition), Maximuscle.
Products: Food, drinks and supplements
Expert Analysis from a Specialist in the Food Sector
This report, written by Claire Finnegan, a leading analyst in the food sector, delivers in-depth commentary and analysis to highlight current trends in the UK sports nutrition market and add expert context to the numbers.
As consumers are seeing their finances come under pressure, commitment to certain health promoting habits is ebbing. This puts sports nutrition too under fire, with usage frequency falling in 2022. As consumers are looking for ways to save money, the disruption to habits is creating opportunities for supermarket own-labels to gain ground in category, though they face intense price competition from DTC. The role they can play as an affordable everyday source of essential nutrients also holds potential for sports nutrition products, with nutritionally complete meal replacement drinks seen widely as an appealing way to save money on food.
Claire Finnegan
Research Analyst
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Overview
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Products covered in this Report
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Executive Summary
- The five year outlook for sports nutrition
- Figure 1: Category outlook, 2023-27
- The market
- Sports nutrition sales through mainstream retail continue rapid growth in 2022
- Figure 2: Value sales in the UK sports nutrition food and drink market^, 2019/20-2021/22
- HFSS regulations poses new challenges for sports nutrition market
- Exercise levels return to pre-pandemic levels
- Modest growth of under-35s population will continue to support the category
- Companies and brands
- Large food companies acquire sports nutrition brands
- One in three launches makes vegan claims
- Brand collaborations and treat NPD continue
- High-/added protein claims dip following peak in 2019
- Category spend on ATL advertising stands above pre-pandemic levels
- The consumer
- Overall usage of sports nutrition products levels off
- Figure 3: Overall usage of sports nutrition products, 2018-19, and 2021-22
- Sports nutrition usage frequency falls
- Protein bars continue to be most widely used product
- Figure 4: Types of sports nutrition products used, 2018-19 and 2021-22
- Feel good messaging will chime with younger sports nutrition users
- Figure 5: Behaviours related to purchasing and using sports nutrition products, 2022
- A tailored approach to sports nutrition chimes with two in three users
- Sports nutrition for low intensity exercise appeals to two in three
- Consumers will seek out affordable solutions in sports nutrition
- Figure 6: Attitudes towards sports nutrition products, 2022
- Brand collaborations with mainstream brands appeal widely among sports nutrition users
- Greater age inclusivity is warranted in the category
- Strong interest in sports nutrition supporting mental performance
- The five year outlook for sports nutrition
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Issues and Insights
- Consumers will seek out affordable solutions in sports nutrition
- Addressing the needs of those who exercise less frequently is key to driving usage
- Greater age-inclusivity is warranted in the category
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Market Size and Performance
- Sports nutrition sales through mainstream channels rebound following COVID-19 disruption
- Figure 7: Value sales in the UK sports nutrition food and drink market^, 2019/20-2021/22
- Sports nutrition category benefits from continued consumer health consciousness
- Sports nutrition sales through mainstream channels rebound following COVID-19 disruption
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Market Drivers
- Inflation is the key concern for consumers and brands…
- …and despite Government support, energy prices are still a major concern
- Rising interest rates mean that the pressure will move up to middle- and higher-income households
- High inflation and rising interest rates will compound the impact of the slowing recovery
- Consumer spending power will be curbed
- Unemployment is at a near-50 year low
- Consumers’ financial wellbeing has fallen from the highs of 2021…
- Figure 8: Household financial wellbeing index, 2016-22
- …and most people are feeling the effects of price rises
- HFSS regulations poses new challenges for sports nutrition market
- Exercise levels return to pre-pandemic levels
- Figure 9: Overall exercise participation and participation more than once a week, 2019-22
- Modest growth of under-35 populations will continue to support the category
- Figure 10: Trends in the age structure of the UK population, 2016-26
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Market Share
- Strong retail sales year for sports nutrition brands
- Figure 11: Leading brands’ value sales in the UK sports nutrition food and drink market*, 2019/20-2021/22
- Ferrero Group acquires FULFIL Nutrition to expand its better-for-you portfolio
- Mondelēz International acquires US energy bar brand Clif
- Norwegian conglomerate Orkla acquires Healthspan
- Science in Sport to conduct a strategic review
- Breakfast cereal brand Weetabix acquires UFIT-owner Lacka Foods
- Morrisons expands its own-label sports nutrition offering
- Strong retail sales year for sports nutrition brands
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Launch Activity and Innovation – Sports Nutrition
- One in three launches make vegan claims
- Figure 12: New product launches in the UK performance nutrition market, by vegan and vegetarian claims, 2017-22
- Vegan meal replacements gain attention among larger brands
- Figure 13: BeNu and Nu26 meal replacements, 2021-22
- Sports nutrition brands offer savoury solutions
- Brand collaborations and treat NPD continue
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- Figure 14: Sweet treat launches from sports nutrition brands, 2022
- Healthspan Elite co-creates expansive sports nutrition range with the New Zealand All Blacks
- Figure 15: Healthspan Elite All Blacks sports nutrition range, 2022
- Brands use limited edition launches to tap into seasonal trends
- MYO Nutrition offers stimulant free pre-workout sprays
- Protein brand Misfits uses bold colours in its packaging revamp
- Figure 16: MYO Pre Workout Spray and Misfits Protein Powder, 2022
- One in three launches make vegan claims
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Launch Activity and Innovation – High-Protein Products
- Methodology
- High-/added protein claims dip following peak in 2019
- Figure 17: Share of high-/added protein launches in food and drink by sub-category, 2017-22
- Incoming HFSS regulation sparks activity in RTE protein snack bars
- Figure 18: Applied Nutrition launches HFSS compliant protein bars, 2022
- Protein claims explored within breakfast cereal category
- Speciality and convenience pasta/noodles feature high-/added protein claims
- Figure 19: High-/added protein claims in pasta and noodles, 2022
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Advertising and Marketing Activity
- Category spend on ATL advertising stands above pre-pandemic levels
- Figure 20: Total above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on athletes health/energy foods by media type, 2019-22
- Brands take a greater focus on wider benefits of exercise
- PhD Nutrition launches its “Born From Science” campaign
- Figure 21: Total above-the-line, online display and direct mail advertising expenditure on athletes health/energy foods, by top ten advertisers, 2019-22
- Energy bar brand Powerbar rebrands to highlight sustainability focus
- Nielsen Ad Intel coverage
- Category spend on ATL advertising stands above pre-pandemic levels
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Usage of Sports Nutrition Products
- Overall usage of sports nutrition products levels off
- Figure 22: Overall usage of sports nutrition products, 2018-19 and 2021-22
- Sports nutrition usage frequency falls
- Figure 23: Frequency of usage of sports nutrition products, 2021-22
- Addressing the needs of those who exercise less frequently is key to driving usage
- Figure 24: Overall usage of sports nutrition products, by frequency of exercise, 2022
- Overall usage of sports nutrition products levels off
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Types of Sports Nutrition Products Used
- Protein bars continue to be most widely used product
- Figure 25: Types of sports nutrition products used, 2018-19 and 2021-22
- RTD protein drinks can benefit from a ‘complete nutrition’ positioning when finances are stretched
- Figure 26: RTD protein drinks on the UK market, 2022
- Protein bars continue to be most widely used product
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Behaviours Related to Purchasing and Using Sports Nutrition Products
- Feel-good messaging will chime with younger sports nutrition users
- Sports nutrition makes users feel good …
- Figure 27: Behaviours related to purchasing and using sports nutrition products, 2022
- … but young men get the most validation from being seen using sports nutrition products
- A tailored approach to sports nutrition chimes with two in three
- The market offers various levels of personalisation from guidance for choosing the right product…
- …to tailored products
- Health monitoring holds untapped potential for personalising the sports nutrition experience
- Sports nutrition for low intensity exercise appeals to two in three
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Attitudes towards Sports Nutrition Products
- Consumers will seek out affordable solutions in sports nutrition
- High interest in supermarket own-label sports nutrition…
- … but over half of people will look online for the best prices
- Figure 28: Attitudes towards sports nutrition products, 2022
- Brand collaborations appeal widely among sports nutrition users
- Greater age-inclusivity is warranted in the category
- Keen interest in age-specific products
- Time is right for wider age profiles in sports nutrition marketing
- Strong interest in sports nutrition supporting mental performance
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- Figure 29: PrecisionBiotics SportPro+ with mental performance claim, 2022
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Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
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Appendix – Launch Activity and Innovation
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- Figure 30: New product launches in the UK performance nutrition market, by top 15 plant protein ingredients, 2017-22
- Figure 31: New product launches in the UK food and drink market, by High/Added Protein claims, 2017-22
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