All Industries

Food

Baby Food and Formula

UK Baby Food and Drink Market Report 2025

UK Baby Food and Drink Market Report 2025

Market Intelligence Reports Baby Food and Formula UK

UK Baby Food and Drink Market Analysis

The UK baby food and drink market has seen nearly 20% decline in volume sales from 2019 to 2024, mainly due to falling birth rates, financial pressures, and rising prices.

The market is expected to continue facing volume declines, but value sales will grow through 2029 due to slower inflation and premium products. Brands will focus on trends like fortified food, international flavours, and healthier snacks to stay competitive.

UK Baby Food and Drink Market Consumer Trends

Consumer trends show a shift towards homemade baby food due to financial concerns and health preferences, with 75% of parents preparing meals daily. However, convenience keeps ready-made products popular. Parents are increasingly focused on vitamins and minerals in their children’s diets, and healthier sweet baked goods for toddlers are gaining interest.

Purchasing the UK Baby Food and Drink Market Report for 2025 provides essential insights into shifting consumer preferences, key health-focused trends, and market forecasts, enabling brands and retailers to adapt their strategies and maintain a competitive edge in the evolving baby food market.

About The Report

The UK Baby Food and Drink Market Report for 2025 offers in-depth insights into consumer behavior, market performance, and future growth projections, with a focus on key trends such as the shift towards homemade food, rising demand for nutrient-rich products, and the growing interest in healthy baby snacks. The report surveys areas such as market value and volume, brand performance, consumer preferences, and emerging innovations like fortified foods and international flavors. This research is invaluable for baby food manufacturers, retailers, and marketers, as well as industry analysts seeking to refine their strategies, identify new opportunities, and stay competitive in the dynamic and evolving baby food industry.

Key Topics Analysed in the Report

The impact of the cost-of-living crisis on value and volume sales of baby food and drink
Parents’ priorities for their children’s diets, and the untapped opportunities stemming from their focus on vitamin and mineral intake
Usage occasions for baby/toddler food/milk and the importance of targeting at-home occasions
Trends in launch activity in baby food, drink and milk, and opportunities for innovation in sweet baked goods based on parents’ interest
Behaviours relating to baby food and drink, including the need to combat concerns from mainstream media coverage of these products’ healthines

Report Attributes	Details
Published Date	April 2025
Data Range	2019-2029
Measurement Metrics	Revenue in £
Country Focus	United Kingdom (UK)
Consumer Data	800 internet users aged 16+ who are parents of children aged 0-4, November 2024
Number of Pages	48
Market Segmentation	Milks (Liquid Ready-to-Feed Products), Meals and Desserts (Wet and Dry, Including Cereals and Dairy-Based), Baby Drinks, Finger Foods (Rusks, Extruded Snacks, Baby Rice Cakes, Biscuits, Fruit Snacks)
Leading Companies	Aptamil, Cow & Gate, Kendamil, Ella’s Kitchen, Organix, Kiddylicious, Little Dish, Heinz, Piccolo, SMA, HiPP Organic, Alpro, Mamia Organic, Asda Little Angels.

Meet the Expert Behind the Analysis

This report was written by Alice Baker. Alice analyses and writes on the UK Food & Drink sector, having joined Mintel in January 2016. She has previously worked for the International Meat Trade Association and in local government. She holds a BA in History and an MA in History of Political Thought from University College London.

Proving their value beyond convenience and up-ageing are crucial for the market as household finances remain tight and with no growth for birth rates ahead.

Alice Baker

Food and Drink Analyst

Collapse All

- Report scope and definitions
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Target at-home occasions to align with cautious consumer mindsets
- Focus on vitamins and minerals to tap parents’ top priority
- Healthier sweet baked goods for babies/toddlers spark wide interest
- Market predictions
THE MARKET
- Snapshot – market size and forecast
- Birth rate in 2023 falls to its lowest level in over 40 years
- Graph 1: live births in England and Wales, 2018-24
- CMA enquiry into the formula milk sector prompts a flurry of price cuts
- Second extension of the free childcare hours creates opportunities for baby food
- Baby food category comes under renewed criticism over sugar
- Formula milk retains its narrow lead on value sales in 2024, though the gap is diminishing
- Graph 2: retail value sales of baby food and drink, by segment, 2022-24
- Rising value sales and falling volumes in 2019-24; similar picture expected for 2024-29
- Further, though slowing, inflation expected for 2024-29
- Aptamil and Cow & Gate continue to dominate formula milk sales but lose ground in 2024
- Graph 3: retail value sales of formula milk, by leading brands, 2022-25
- Ella’s Kitchen retains lead in baby food, snacks and drinks
- Graph 4: leading baby food/drinks/snacks brands’ value sales, 2022/23-2024/25
THE CONSUMER
- Consumer fast facts
- Usage of baby food and drink
- Homemade food leads on usage frequency
- Graph 5: frequency of feeding of different types of baby food and drink, 2024
- Tight household finances remain a problem for the category
- Less well-off parents use ready-made meals and snacks less often
- Graph 6: feeding of baby/toddler food products and baby/toddler finger foods/snacks once a day or more often, by how people describe their household finances, 2024
- Parents’ priorities for their children’s diets
- Put the spotlight on vitamins and minerals, parents’ top priority
- Parents’ focus on vitamins/minerals suggests untapped opportunity
- Latch onto parents’ strong trust in experts
- Explore vitamin/mineral food supplement powders
- Usage occasions for manufactured baby/toddler food and milk
- Target at home occasions to drive purchase amid cautious spending mindsets
- Advise on how to make at-home occasions more fun to engage parents
- Promote ready-made baby/toddler food as an easy way to add variety to children’s diets to boost usage
- Portray ready-made baby/toddler food as giving parents more time to spend with their children
- Encourage use as an ingredient, and explore shortcut cooking/baking products
- Interest in innovation in baby food and drink
- Babies/toddlers’ healthier sweet baked goods warrant exploration
- Healthier sweet baked goods for babies/toddlers appeal to many
- Bake-at-home versions can appeal as a less processed option
- Promote frozen baked goods outside the freezer aisle
- Behaviours relating to baby food and drink
- Media criticism of baby/toddler food boosts appeal of homemade foods
- Low/reduced sugar claims are rare in baby/toddler food
- Raise consumer awareness of the benefits of ingredients and processes
PRODUCT, INNOVATION AND MARKETING
- Nutrition and health claims are more widespread in formula milk than in baby/toddler food
- Graph 7: share of new product launches with selected health claims in the baby/toddler food and milk category, 2020-24
- Baby food brands call out their omega-3 content
- Baby food brands continue their efforts to stay relevant to older children
- Further activity in international flavours
- Competition heats up in formula milk
- Advertising spend on baby food rises in 2024
- Increased public profile boosts Kendamil
APPENDIX
- Trends in the population age structure
- Retail sales and forecast for baby food and drink
- Market size and forecast – volumes
- Market forecast and prediction intervals (values)
- Market forecast and prediction intervals (volumes)
- Market segmentation
- Market share – formula milk – brands
- Market share – formula milk – brand owners
- Market share – baby food, snacks and drinks – values – brands
- Market share – baby food, snacks and drinks – volumes – brands
- Market share – baby food, snacks and drinks – values – brand owners
- Market share – baby food, snacks and drinks – volumes – brand owners
- Advertising and marketing
- Consumer research methodology
- Consumer research questions
- Forecast methodology
- Abbreviations and terms

Market Intelligence Made Easier With Mintel

The first Mintel Market Intelligence report was published over 50 years ago. Since then, we have provided our unique insights and understanding of consumers, innovation and global markets to thousands of customers worldwide. Here’s why our customers rely on Mintel:

Gain a comprehensive, 360-degree view of the market: Mintel reports blend consumer research, market forecasts, product innovation tracking, and competitive analysis, allowing businesses to see every angle of their industry and identify new opportunities quickly.
Make decisions with confidence, grounded in robust data: Each report draws on up-to-date, reliable information from trusted sources and industry experts, ensuring your strategies are based on solid evidence rather than speculation.
Benefit from expert analysis and practical recommendations: Mintel’s reports are written by experienced analysts who interpret complex data and provide clear, actionable insights you can trust to guide your next moves.
Stay ahead with actionable intelligence on market trends and consumer behaviour: By combining fresh research with long-term market monitoring, our reports help businesses anticipate changes and adapt strategically. So you’re prepared to make informed decisions and drive growth.

What goes into a Mintel Market Intelligence Report?

Curious about how a Market Intelligence report comes together? We like to think of it as building a detailed puzzle. We start with individual pieces: data from consumers, market statistics, industry trends, and online conversations. Then our expert analysts add world-class human insight and industry knowledge. The pieces are assembled to reveal a clear, comprehensive picture of a market.

The Four Pillars of Our Research

We use a combination of four main research methods when creating our reports, each adding a valuable perspective:

Consumer Research: Direct surveys with real people, giving us clear, current insights into what people think and do.
Desk Research: In-depth review of trusted data sources. We use this rich database, plus powerful internal tools that track new products and market sizes, to detect trends and guide forecasts.
Trade Research: Insights from conversations with industry experts. Their real-world experience helps us understand what’s happening behind the scenes.
Brand and Social Media Research: Analysis of online opinions and trends. This lets us spot trends, measure brand sentiment, and capture feedback in real time, adding further depth to our research.

Bringing It All Together

Each of these four pillars provides a different piece of the puzzle. Consumer research tells us what customers think, desk research provides the factual framework, trade research offers an insider’s view, and social media analysis reveals public sentiment.

Our expert analysts are skilled in weaving these diverse data streams together. They apply a range of quantitative and qualitative analysis techniques to uncover the deeper story, connecting the dots to deliver clear, actionable insights. This comprehensive, multi-layered process is how we transform raw data into a market intelligence report you can trust to inform your most important business decisions.

For a closer look at a Mintel Market Intelligence Report, take a look at the sample PDF report below:

Please Note: All of the figures, graphs, and tables in this sample report have been redacted.

£ 2,195 (Excl.Tax)

Download today with instant access
Multiple formats provided
Interactive databook included

Report Brochure Methodology Talk to a Reports Specialist

Next Starts Here

Whatever your business needs, we have the solution. From market intelligence reports to customised growth strategies.

Learn more

Trusted by global industry leaders

We utilize Mintel Reports, Trends and Comperemedia to mine for insights across the numerous business verticals that Epsilon serves, such as CPG, automotive, telecom, healthcare/pharma, retail and financial services.

By integrating Mintel insight into new business opportunities, we have been able to gain the competitive edge necessary to advance partnerships with global brands and key business players.

For our organization, it’s about depth and breadth. Having one without the other doesn’t enable success in our business.

Virginia Harvey, Secondary Research Manager, Epsilon

One of the biggest challenges we face is the need to get smart on a business or category real quick.

We are talking to clients who live and breathe their category every day and the expectation is that we will be able to get caught up very quickly, and bring the thinking that can help them.

We need to do that often in a matter of days, so it’s not a small ask. Mintel gives us a very articulate view of category conditions and does so at the speed we need it.

Jeff White, Business Development Director, Deutsch

Mintel helps us when we want to know something quickly – it provides fast answers to our questions. If we need to get a view of what’s going on in a particular market it’s very useful.

When carrying out background research, I find Mintel an excellent starting point.

The fact that it covers so many markets is a big plus for me– instead of having to buy specialist products in each area we are interested in, especially when we only require a brief view on a particular market, we can go to Mintel for help as a one-stop shop. I find Mintel a useful and valuable resource.

Ben Zeidler, Director - Research and Analytics, Tenth Wave

There is no question that Mintel is the go-to resource for the best quality market research, but I did not think it was an affordable option for Abacus Marketing to consider. As a small marketing agency, we only work with a few new clients each year.

However, we have a very high-end consultative approach to our work, so we really do need a partner like Mintel to provide the big agency experience we are always aiming to deliver. Our clients come from an incredibly diverse range of industry sectors, so we obviously need access to market research reports from a very wide spectrum of marketplaces – and that is precisely what we got.

Stephen Taylor-Brown, Managing Director, Abacus

Working in a customer-obsessed organization means that data and insights have to be at our fingertips. Mintel’s reports help us support anecdotes with real quantifiable insights. The summary sections (which I really like) helps save time by giving a birds eye view of the content before spending time combing through the pages.

Our business review discussions are strengthened by the relevancy of the reports to help us better understand our customers. In addition, the customer service received from the team (especially in crunch periods) makes the process of understanding customer behavior even better.