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Gummy Vitamins Aren’t Just for Kids Anymore

September 2022

As children, sweet supplement chews were often the only way parents could ensure their kids were getting all necessary vitamins. Once we became adults, a much less enjoyable pill supplement was seen as the way to go. But who actually enjoys those pills? And when did becoming an adult mean losing out on the fun stuff?! Today, the global gummy vitamin market size is expanding at a 12.5% growth rate, and is projected to reach $10.6 billion by 20251. It’s clear: adult consumers are shifting their preference back to the gummy formulation.

That doesn’t mean consumers want a full flashback to childhood. Despite the growing preference for fun colors, tastes, and textures, consumers are demanding that their adult gummy supplements follow current consumer trends, like clean label and plant based. To help you and your fellow formulators make the most of this new opportunity — and to create a more enjoyable customer experience — here are some need-to-know innovations around current ingredient trends:

Nature Knows Best
One study found that consumers are enjoying gummy vitamins made from natural fruit powders instead of artificial ingredients2. As non-pill vitamins, including gummies, powders, and chews, continue to grab market share, interest in the pill format declines3. You can spark interest in a non-pill offering by innovating with all-natural, freeze-dried ingredients to produce a clean label vitamin.

Rich in antioxidants and vitamins, freeze-dried ingredients, such as strawberry, broccoli, kiwi, blueberry and elderberry, provide preserved nutrients and immune-boosting qualities to a supplement, without artificial additives. This lets consumers skip the added sugar intake and enjoy the naturally enhanced flavor and color of the vitamin.

Plant Powered Nutrition
Analysts predict an 11.9%4 compound annual growth rate for plant-based supplements over the next six years as consumers show a strong appetite for a plant-based way to elevate their nutrition. However, most gummy vitamins are still formulated with animal-based gelatin. Using pectin as a vegan-friendly binder allows consumers on plant-based diets to find joy in increasing their vitamin intake.

Some freeze-dried fruit ingredients have a natural content of pectin that enhances firmness and elasticity, but gummy vitamins require the usage of added pectin to get the chewy consistency consumers are looking for. The synergy between the pectin from freeze-dried fruits and added pectin helps formulators create simple, tasty and nutritious gummies.

As innovative formulators, what could be more rewarding than making healthy products both fun and exciting? By adding freeze-dried ingredients to your next batch of gummy vitamins, you are taking the chore out of maintaining health and wellness. Available in pieces and powder blends, freeze-dried ingredients can help incorporate trending claims and naturally preserved nutrition. Freeze-dried powder blends are not only rich in vitamins, but can also be customized to add ingredients or functional benefits, like probiotics, that consumers are demanding.

Looking to innovate the next generation of fruit and veggie-based gummy vitamins? Contact us at customer.services@chaucerfoods.com.

Reference
1 – Gummy Vitamins Market by Product Type,” MarketsandMarkets. 2021.
2 – “Physicochemical and Sensory Properties of Gummy Candies Enriched with Pineapple and Papaya Peel Powders,” Scientific Research Publishing. 2019.
3 – “The U.S. Gummy Market: 5 Insights for Supplement Manufacturers to Chew On.” Glanbia Nutritionals. August 2021.
4 – “Plant-Based Vitamin Sources: Challenges and Innovations,” Eurofins. 2022.

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