The COVID-19 crisis has pushed demand for healthier beverages – consumers stockpile on products that are good for them, easy to prepare,or have long shelf life. While sports and energy drinks may not be at the top of the shopping list, manufacturers are taking a cue from this – – and enhance drinks to give them better appeal.
Formulated to keep the body hydrated during or after exercise and strenuous activities, sports drinks contain carbohydrates, potassium, sodium and chloride, and sugar for energy recovery and betterperformance.
Expected to reach US$ 32.83 blliono by 2027,the global sports drink market is driven not just by om the popularity of sport drinks among athletes butby growing health awareness among consumers, This encourages manufacturers to invest in product enhancement, whether it is by adding variety ora change in packaging. As demand for flavoured sports drinks grows on the global market, manufacturers are introducing new product lines with more enticing flavours. Product enhancement is key since even big brands are seeing strong competition from other hydrating beverages.
Sports nutrition guidelines are also consideredwhen making sports beverages to give consumers better performance benefts.
Stringent government regulations have also led to the development of clean label products.
This is important since consumers now seel natural ingredients including flavours and sweetener in most beverage products.
Stricter regulations have also led to the development of safety practices and in creating transparency between consumers and manufacturers. As the so-called sports drinks wars between startups and existing market players escalate, new marketing tactics and innovations are used to target the right segment of consumer’s sports drinks.
One of the key factors restricting the overall sports drink market growth is the unproven claims made by the producers of the sports drink regarding the health benefits of the product.
Some studies have reported the negative effects of sports drinks due to the high sugar content, from tooth decay to behavioural issues.
Due to certain side effects linked with the sports drinks, consumers are inclined toward organic and natural products. This is producing limitation in the development of the market.
On the other hand, manufacture of sports drink using natural elements, for example natural sweeteners, is likely to boost the development of the sports drink industry, by way of providing opening to the companies to increase the price of theirgoods.
Energy drinks
Energy drinks are categorised under a larger group of energy products like bars and gels. They differ from sports
drinks, which are for enhancing sports performance. There are several beverages in the global market which contain caffeine, but not all can be considered an energy drink. Energy drinks differ from soft drinks or other caffeine containing products owing to the taste and health benefits provided.
Since energy drinkscontain compounds like caffeine mainly for mental and physical stimulation, they appeal to a growing number of consumers who live hectic lifestyles that require them to spend more hours at work and get less hours of sleep. These drinks also contain amino acids, taurine, and sugar, or other taste- enhancing products like sweeteners. Some energy drinks are carbonated.
sport – asian couple running outdoor doing exercise
The challenges
The global energy drinks market might receive a heavy blow soon due to the competition between energy drinks and other beverages like packaged juice, malted health drinks, and aerated beverages. While energy drinks are in high demand, it’s the high cost that other beverages leverage to take over the market as consumers may consider opportunity over quality.
Also, the rise in awareness regarding the adverse effect of caffeine might foster the decline in the growth of energy drinks over the forecast period. Consumers are conscious about the product they consume from the food and beverage industry.The global energy drinks market size could reach USD 84.70 billion by 2026 growing at a CAGR of 7.3% from 2020 to 2026 according to Polaris Market Research. In spite of the increasing demand, current evidence for efficacy, performance and safety is often contradictory and unsystematic, and the primary concern of these beverages is that most of the product categories offered contain high caffeine concentrations.
Source: https://ww.absolutemarketsinsights.com/
