Joanna Cosgrove 09.23.10
Cardiovascular disease continues to rank atop the cause of death list, not just in the U.S. but also abroad. According to statistics from the World Health Organization, almost 23.6 million people will die from cardiovascular disease, mainly from heart disease and stroke, between 2009 and 2030, making heart health products an important food and beverage development area.
"Cardiovascular Health: A Key Area of Functional Food and Drinks Development," a new report from Euromonitor International, encapsulated the global sales prospects of fortified/functional heart healthy products and their role in preventative approaches to heart health.
"Cardiovascular Health: A Key Area of Functional Food and Drinks Development," a new report from Euromonitor International, encapsulated the global sales prospects of fortified/functional heart healthy products and their role in preventative approaches to heart health.
After affirming that the entire fortified/functional food and beverage segment is roughly 2.5 times the size of the vitamin and dietary supplement segment, the Euromonitor report outlined three primary drivers for global health and wellness.
First, consumers are moving away from using supplements to treat health conditions and instead prevent health conditions. Second, consumers are more apt to supplement their diet with foods and drinks instead of pills. And finally, more readily available information is helping to educate consumers about the role of functional ingredients. Armed with that information, consumers are more frequently structuring their diet around specific health conditions.
The most reputable and widely used ingredients, according to the report, are plant sterols and omega 3 fatty acids. Ewa Hudson, Euromonitor’s head of global health and wellness research, pointed to an opinion from the European Food Safety Authority indicating that a daily consumption of 1.5-2.4 grams of plant sterols can decrease cholesterol levels from 7-10%. She also noted that the American Heart Association recommends 500 mg daily of omega 3s for healthy individuals and 1000 mg for those with confirmed cardiovascular disease.
Top Products
Ms. Hudson said research indicated that spreads were the most popular heart healthy functional food. “When we look at heart health food and beverages, the largest category is functional spreads, those that contain plant sterols and omega 3s. They account for approximately one quarter of global sales,” she said.
In fact, the report stated that the value of heart-healthy functional spreadable oils and fats grew by 28%, as opposed to 16% for regular spreadable oils and fats.
Heart-healthy yogurt continues to be the most fast-paced performer, with global sales advancing a whopping 205% between 2005 and 2009. “This is nearly four times faster than another star performer—probiotic yogurt—sales of which increased by 46% over the same period,” the report stated.
Ms. Hudson said yogurt accounts for 18% of category sales and that figure continues to grow.
She went on to add that the $3.2 billion in global sales (2009) for heart healthy foods and beverages were remarkably akin to the global sales of hot cereals, most of which contain oats and, by proxy, beneficial beta-glucans.
She went on to add that the $3.2 billion in global sales (2009) for heart healthy foods and beverages were remarkably akin to the global sales of hot cereals, most of which contain oats and, by proxy, beneficial beta-glucans.
Omega 3 fortified milk is the latest heart healthy trend, followed by juice—a product poised to reach a wider consumer base because it can be consumed by people who are lactose intolerant or who don’t consume dairy products, the report asserted. “Among the other products for these consumers are non-dairy dairy products; the leading products here are oat beverages. The Swedish company Oatly is emerging as a leading company in this market. Two other emerging products in the non-dairy category are non-dairy cheese and flavored milk drinks,” the report said.
Intriguing Ingredients
Products formulated with plant sterols account for almost double the sales of omega 3 products, the report found, however, most of those sales are in Europe and North America. Asia and Latin America are relatively unpenetrated in terms of heart healthy products. Ms. Hudson encouraged manufacturers of heart healthy products to focus on Latin America and Asia, mainly due to the high heart disease rate in both areas.
“The main challenge for heart healthy foods and beverages is that they don’t offer instant gratification to consumers, so products with plant sterols and omega 3 are usually sold on the premise of a long-term health benefit and consumers need to trust manufactures that these products will help them in preventing the development of cardiovascular [problems],” she said.
Regulatory issues are another factor impacting ingredients used to formulate heart healthy foods and beverages. “The ongoing regulatory framework is changing in many regions,” Ms. Hudson commented. “In Europe, the European Food Safety Authority recently revised its opinions on health claims, and fortunately both plant sterols and omega 3 are in a very lucky position because these are health claims that are approved by EFSA. However this is not the case with other ingredients like peptides or novelty health ingredients and it may take years for these products to be approved and sold on the global market.”
The report spotlighted a number of promising ingredients that stand to bode well for future heart healthy food and beverage product developments: Cardioviva, a probiotic product based on the L. reuteri strain for lowering LDL cholesterol; Artinia, a vegetarian fiber from Stratum Nutrition that features the benefits of both soluble and insoluble fibers and supports the body's natural defenses against oxidized LDL cholesterol; cocoa flavanols and nuts.
In addition, Euromonitor stated that additional ingredients are currently being researched to better affirm their potential for heart health. These ingredients include pistachios for lowered serum oxidized LDL cholesterol; isothiocyanates, naturally occurring compounds found in broccoli and watercress, for cardiovascular inflammation; green tea extract and wheat aleurone.
Ms. Hudson said that many new ingredients, even those that seem widely accepted like plant sterols and omega 3s, still present a degree of uncertainty to many global consumers. “Many people still don’t trust these ingredient and aren’t sure why they should have omega 3 in their milk, for example,” she said. “It will take a number of years to educate the consumer and help them understand why they should trust these products. When this is done, we will see a big change in the development in heart healthy foods and beverages.”
