Market Needs and Solutions: Supporting Anti-Obesity Medication Consumers

Weight Management - More Pertinent Than Ever:

Since the mid-1990s, obesity rates have surged by 300%, making weight management a critical focus for many consumers¹. Recently, a new segment has emerged: consumers using Anti-Obesity Medications (AOMs) to lose weight. Below, we delve into this segment and consumer's behaviors and explore how we, along with manufacturers, can support them. Together, we can develop innovative food and beverages that align with the needs of these consumers, offering flavorful, nutrient-dense foods and beverages with functional health benefits in convenient formats.

Understanding the AOM Consumer:

IFF is prioritizing this new evolving space and is continuously working to identify the underlying attitudes, incentives and preferences that shape the decision-making of AOM consumers. Fueled by consumer insights from in-house and subject-matter experts, nutritionists and market research analysts, we're analyzing AOM consumer needs and shaping preferences to create rewarding taste experiences that facilitate the pursuit of a healthy weight management journeys.

Key Findings from AOM Consumers:

Less Food: Meals are much smaller than what they ate before taking AOMs.

More Mindful Choices: Higher protein intake and more home-cooked meals, with healthier options that have less sugar and fat.

Reduced Food Noise: Less frequent thoughts about food throughout the day, a new experience for many.

Concern with Side Effects: Many consumers taking AOMS experience side effects - an opportunity to introduce these consumers to food and beverages that help mitigate these symptoms through the creation of dedicated healthier options.

Bottom Line: AOM consumers eat less and think less about food but make more mindful choices when they do eat.

Opportunities Based on Recent Research:

Rise and Shine with Better For You Breakfast

Before AOMs: Before taking AOMs, consumers would often hit the drive-throughs for sugary, calorie-dense breakfasts like pancakes and doughnuts, purchasing a sugary drink to wash it all down with.

With AOMs: Now, AOM users say breakfast is the toughest meal of the day. They have a much smaller appetite and are looking to start their day with a meal that packs a nutritious punch and is kind to their digestive systems, which is very different from their pre-AOM way of life.

Market Opportunities: Let's ease the breakfast struggle by creating delicious and nutritious breakfast items, like shakes and bars, that will start the day on the right foot. IFF soy protein solutions are designed to deliver high-quality nutrition and with great taste and texture. High-quality proteins have been shown to help maintain muscle mass on a calorie-restricted diet. Packing on the protein does affect taste, but our flavors mask high-protein off notes and provide desired taste. Lastly, our fiber options will aid in improving digestive health.

Snacking Smarter

Before AOMs: The volume and frequency of indulging in snacks was out of control for many of these users.

With AOMs: Now, they're making better choices. Users do still have cravings and are looking at healthier choices to satisfy those cravings. Replicating the experience of favorite snacks is key, and they share these qualities:

• Sweetness
• Salty
• Crunchy
• Mindless munching

Market Opportunities: Let's satisfy these cravings with their favorite snack experiences. IFF offers a range of flavors, from high-impact top notes to more subtle tonalities, to provide something for every snacking occasion. IFF Flavors make that delicious fizzy drink and every mouthful of crunchy, salty snacks a genuine sensorial delight. Our modulation technologies can create healthier products with natural flavors, supporting manufacturers by adjusting sweetness and saltiness, improving mouthfeel and masking undesirable off-notes like bitterness. And with IFF fiber and proteins in the mix, these products can help with digestion - all in one satisfying, tasty snack, no matter their preferences.

Rethink Your Drink

Before AOMs: AOM users consumed full sugar drinks, whether on the go or just at home. Maintaining healthy hydration was often an afterthought.

With AOMs: Now, they're switching to lower- or zero-calorie drinks that provide valuable hydration, along with carbonation, flavor and sweetness, while being healthier. If they do have a full-sugar drink, like the ones they enjoyed prior to taking AOMs, they now struggle to drink an entire standard serving of these products, which was never the case before.

Market Opportunities: Let's create healthier drinks packed with natural flavors, less sugar and salt. Our technology allows these beverages to have an enhanced mouthfeel all while masking undesirable off-notes like bitterness.

Thrive, Don't Deprive

Before AOMs: Indulgence was commonplace amongst these consumers, but many felt guilty about not thinking of their health first.

With AOMs:AOM users don't want to deprive themselves. They're looking for a satisfying experience while working toward their goals and desired results. Sacrificing or trading taste to manage their weight long-term feels like a punishment and lessens the odds of keeping up the healthy weight lifestyle.

MARKET OPPORTUNITIES: Together, we can make foods taste indulgent, creamy, sweet, flavorful, rich and more, all while reducing the amount of calories, salt, sugar and fat. IFF can also support your product with enzymes or cultures for sugar reduction and texturants to help your product stand out.

Consumers on an Alternate Weight Management Journey?: For those consumers taking the more traditional route for weight loss, we offer high quality proteins that have been shown to increase satiety and control overall appetite, fibers to help consumer's digestive systems and flavors to create a cravable, yet nutritious product.

Let's Create Healthier, Tastier Products-Together:

Let's create smaller portions with quality nutrition and make it delicious for consumers, together. Explore the IFF PRODUCT DESIGN™ AR Experience, which allows you to experiment with our ingredients and flavors, enabling them to build nutritional bar concepts. The App showcases IFF's toolkit of great-tasting, high-protein solutions to help support satiety and healthy weight management journey. Some of the specific solutions in our portfolio include flavors, proteins, fibers, probiotics, fruit inclusions, replacements and extenders among others. IFF is your credible partner with the expertise to provide consistent concept co-creation, insights and overall technological solutions. Contact us today to talk through possible customized solutions or for co-creation for your consumers.

NOTE: Insights from this blog were gathered using video ethnography during a three-month longitudinal study with users of AOMs by Watch Me Think- a trusted IFF partner, and experts at uncovering authentic and impactful consumer insight.

1. WSTheFutureofWellnessTrends2023

This is business-to-business information intended for food and supplement producers, and is not intended for the final consumer. This information is based on our own research and development work and is, to the best of our knowledge, reliable. However, nothing herein shall constitute a guarantee or warranty with respect to products of IFF or its affiliates or information contained herein and IFF does not assume any liability or risk involved in the use of its products or the information contained herein, as conditions of use are beyond our control. Statements concerning possible use of products of IFF or its affiliates are not to be construed as recommendations for any use which would violate any patent rights, regulations or statutory restrictions. Manufacturers should check local regulatory status of any claims according to the intended use of their product.

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