6 diets supercharging food and beverage sales

The meteoric rise of the health and wellness trend, powering a $6.3tn (€5.5tn) market and representing 6.03% of global GDP (Global Wellness Institute), has led to the rapid growth of existing diets and emergence of many more.

We discover the diets currently fuelling sales of food and beverage products across the globe.

Low-carb dietThe low-carbohydrate diet has long been lauded as the secret to weight loss, making it wildly popular with consumers and fuelling sales of low-carb foods and beverages. These include high-protein foods such as meat, fish and eggs.

What’s more, the number of new product launches that carry low-carb claims has risen sharply in recent years, according to research from Mintel.

The most popular low-carb launches have been seen in categories traditionally associated with high-carbohydrate products such as pasta, baking ingredients and bread.

The low-carbohydrate diet has long been lauded as the secret to weight loss making it hugely popular with consumers. (Image: Getty/alvarez)Keto dietThe ketogenic diet (keto) has been liked to numerous health benefits including weight loss, improved autoimmune disease symptoms, boosted brain health and delayed early Alzheimer’s. And it’s because of these positive links that keto is one of the most popular diets globally, boosting sales of low-carb and high-fat foods and beverages, and gaining a global market value of $9.42bn, with that figure projected to reach $16.23bn by 2033 (Spherical Insights). Meat, fish , eggs, nuts, seeds and dairy products feature heavily in the keto diet.

Keto works by restricting carbohydrate intake to provoke the body into producing ketones – an alternative fuel source for the body that’s made when glucose is limited.

Meat, fish , eggs, nuts, seeds and dairy products feature heavily in the keto diet. (Image: Getty/LauriPatterson)Autoimmune Protocol diet (AIP)The Autoimmune Protocol diet (AIP) is fast becoming one of the most influential in food and beverage.

The AIP diet has gained particular attention in recent years as it aims to identify foods and beverages that trigger symptoms of autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and rheumatoid arthritis, as autoimmune diseases themselves cannot be cured and so must be managed.

Foods removed at the beginning of the AIP diet include all dairy products (milk, butter, cheese, yoghurt), all grains (bread, rice, pasta, barley, oats), potatoes, chocolate, alcohol, eggs, seeds, beans, nuts, legumes, dried fruits, and certain herbs and spices.

Food permitted as part of the AIP diet include fresh meat and seafood, non-nightshade vegetables, healthy fats, fermented foods and beverages, and natural sweeteners.

Fermented foods and beverages such as kefir are permitted in the restrictive Autoimmune Protocol Diet (AIP). (Image: Getty/istockphotoluis)Low-histamine dietUnderstanding of the low-histamine diet is relatively new, but it’s quickly gaining consumer interest.

“In the last few years I’ve seen a huge increase in people asking about the low-histamine diet,” says Chloe Hall, founder of The Calm Gut Dietitian.

Histamine is made in the body from the amino acid, histidine. In addition to this, certain bacteria in the gut can also produce histamine. Outside of the body, the main source of histamine, is food.

Histamine can become a problem if the body over-produces histamine and fails to adequately manage it by breaking it down.

The low-histamine diet focuses on consuming foods that are low in histamine such as fresh meat, eggs, wholegrain products including pasta and bread, and removing foods that are high in histamine such as processed meats, aged cheeses, legumes and citrus fruit.

Low-histamine foods such as eggs are included in the low-histamine diet. (Image: Getty/margouillatphotos)Low-cortisol dietFast gaining popularity and influencing consumer eating habits, the low-cortisol diet is currently dominating social media, with ‘cortisol’ tagged 558K times on Instagram and 454k times on Facebook. What’s more, there are dozens of accounts, including Cortisol_Coach (305k followers) and Gabrielle_Cortisol.Coach (108k followers), dedicated to helping consumers cut their cortisol levels.

There is currently no official definition of the low-cortisol diet. However, it is widely recognised as a style of eating which focuses on removing foods that trigger an increase in cortisol levels such as red meats, highly processed foods and refined carbohydrates, and including foods that help to reduce cortisol levels such as fruits, vegetables, wholegrains and beans.

Cortisol is released into the bloodstream, when the body perceives itself to be faced with a stressful situation, activating the ‘fight or flight’ response. Cortisol levels then drop when the threat passes. However, problems arise when cortisol levels remain consistently high, leading to an increased risk of a range of health conditions.

Foods low in cortisol include beans, pulses and lentils. (Image: Getty/Janine Lamontagne)Gut healthWhile this might not be a specific diet, it is certainly a powerful force in the food and beverage space, catapulting sales of any and all food and beverage products that promote good gut health into the stratosphere. This includes kefir, kombucha, kimchi and sauerkraut.

In fact, such is its dominance, that the global digestive health products market is now valued at $51.62bn, and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 8.3% over the next five years (Grand View Research).

“Gut health really is an important area within food and drink, particularly functional food and drink,” says Rick Miller, associate director for specialised nutrition at Mintel.

Kombucha is one of the many gut-friendly foods and beverages proving hugely popular with consumers. (Image: Getty/Premyuda Yospim)

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