Demand for health functional foods rises in 2023: Report

[Image source: Gettyimagesbank]

There has been a steep increase in the number of South Korean consumers looking after their bones, joints, eyes, and mental health through health functional foods this year, a recent report shows. This move comes as demand for health functional foods, which was focused on boosting immunity during the Covid-19 pandemic, has diversified, with a particular emphasis on anti-aging-related health functional foods due to a rapidly aging population.

According to a report recently published by RSN, a Korean artificial intelligence (AI)-based big data analysis company, there were 3,309 mentions related to bone and joint care on social media as of May, an increase of around 114 percent from January’s 1,550 figure. During the same period, the number of eye health mentions rose by about 76 percent to 3,818 from 2,176 and mentions related to sleep health and mental care by about 17 percent to 644 from 553.

These results were obtained from keyword analyses conducted on 1.64 million health functional food-related posts on online communities, Instagram, YouTube, and other social media services from June last year to May this year.

The report said consumers mainly consume bone and joint care health functional foods to address joint or knee pain, with collagen and protein being the main keywords. The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety recommends consuming functional ingredients rich in calcium and vitamin D, along with regular exercise, for bone and joint health, while explaining that health functional foods containing ingredients such as green-lipped mussel extract oil complex, fatty acids, and hop extract are helpful in reducing joint pain as they inhibit the generation of inflammation-inducing substances.

For eye health, many consumers turn to health functional foods to prevent or improve vision loss, aging, dry eyes, and cataracts, primarily consuming foods containing lutein and omega-3 that are beneficial for eye health. The report predicts that consumer interest in eye-related health functional foods will become more segmented in the future, with consumers combining keywords such as the form (rTG-type, increased purity and absorption rate, and enhanced bioavailability) and ingredients (plant-based).

Sleep health and mental care health functional foods are mainly used for relieving stress, insomnia, anxiety, and tension. Commonly sought-after functional ingredients include lactium, theanine, and niacin. hy Co.’s “Stress Care Rest,” which contains 250 milligrams(mg) of L-theanine to help alleviate tension caused by stress, sold over 10 million units in the 12 weeks following its release.

Demand for health functional foods also showed a segmented pattern by generation. Those in their 20s and 30s were most interested in hair loss, which made up 32 percent of the social media mentions. Mentions of biotin, a functional ingredient that helps prevent hair loss, were the highest. Overall health care was the second highest at 28 percent, followed by inner beauty such as skincare at 23 percent, and diet at 8 percent. Those in their 40s and 50s, however, showed the highest interest in overall health care (40s 28 percent, 50s and above 32 percent), with diet coming in second place (40s 19 percent, 50s and above 22 percent).

Interest in easily consumable forms of health functional foods has also increased in recent years. According to RSN’s analysis of keywords related to health functional food forms from 2020 to 2022, there was a significant increase in social media mentions of liquid, ampoule, all-in-one forms combining liquid and capsules, and oral dissolving films that can be consumed without water.

Last year, the number of social media mentions of liquid and ampoule increased by 46 percent to14,431 from two years ago, all-in-one forms 93 percent to 2,075, and oral dissolving films a whopping 746 percent to 643.

As demand for health functional food becomes more segmented based on factors such as gender, age, and dietary habits, both food and platform companies are offering customized services. The domestic health functional food market is estimated to be worth 6 trillion won ($4.53 billion) annually.