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As consumers demand less sugar, more protein, and products that support digestive wellness, inulin—a prebiotic soluble fiber found in many fruits and vegetables—is positioned to have a coming out party, according to Julian Mellentin, food and beverage consultant, and director of New Nutrition Business.

Sales of breakfast cereals have suffered in recent years, both from the lower sugar and lower carb trends, but many brands are discovering that they can gain sales in a challenging market by using inulin to offer both a digestive wellness benefit and a low sugar promise—“two of the biggest consumer growth trends,” said Mellentin.
These benefits have caused demand for inulin to surge—the number of products launched that feature inulin doubled between 2012 and 2019,” he added.

Consumers are paying more attention to the fiber-content of their foods than ever before, as gut health shakes off its stigma for good. Ireland-based CyberColloids discusses this in its report about functionalized fibers. The company is highlighting these as a clean label replacement for hydrocolloids, which are classified as food additives in Europe. Meanwhile, consultancy company New Nutrition pegs 2020 as the year of inulin.

Sarah Hotchkiss, Project Manager at CyberColloids notes that strong growth in the global fiber market is currently, and will continue to be, driven by health-conscious consumers who are demanding added benefits that go beyond basic nutrition. Growth is also being fueled by innovative new product development, in particular in healthier foods – such as with reduced sugar and fat formulations – and in functional foods.

The demand for the prebiotic fibre inulin is on the rise, thanks to the strong consumer desire for less sugar, more protein and products that support digestive wellness. This was stated by food and beverage consultant Julian Mellentin, author of 10 Key Trends in Food, Nutrition and Health 2020, a new report that highlights the key consumer trends driving growth in the industry.

“The confluence of the protein, low-sugar and digestive wellness trends is causing inulin to power ahead,” he added, stating, “Inulin has become a success as a natural sugar replacement, used in an ever-growing number of products, and its presence means that companies can also flag up the enhanced fibre content on the label.”

Inulin and Inulin type fructans from Chicory root just got the green light to be listed as dietary fiber from the FDA. Long-awaited guidance from the FDA spelling out which isolated or synthetic non-digestible carbohydrates it believes should be classified as ‘dietary fiber’ on the Nutrition Facts panel brings to an end a period of extended uncertainty for companies supplying widely-used ingredients from inulin to polydextrose.

According to the FDA: “To be clear, the FDA didn’t approve or reject anything. We granted and denied certain petitions and made determinations about whether the 26 non-digestible carbohydrates from the 2016 science review meet the criteria to be considered a dietary fiber as laid out in this guidance from earlier this year”.

NEW YORK, Oct. 26, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The global prebiotics market is expected to reach USD 7.11 billion by 2024, according to a new report by Grand View Research, Inc. Growing demand for fiber rich food products is expected to drive the market.

Rising investment in the food & beverage industry for innovation and development of new food products enriched with prebiotics coupled with rising demand in dietary supplements application particularly in infant foods is expected to propel market growth over the forecast period. In addition, rising use of prebiotics in animal feed is expected to drive the demand. Growing emphasis on improving overall health is also expected to fuel product demand over the next eight years.

Emergence of prebiotics as an alternate to antibiotics is expected to fuel demand in animal feed applications. Increasing dairy production is expected to have a positive impact on market over the next eight years