"Are There Separate Supplements for Vegetarians?" Nutritional Supplements Evolve to Meet Consumer Demands

Anti-Aging and Stress Relief Segmented by Type
Customized Supplements by Efficacy Launched One After Another
Diversification of Ingredients and Formulations... Products Targeting Consumer Values Such as Vegetarianism

Health functional foods are becoming more diversified (Photo by iHerb).

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] As the health functional food market rapidly grows, 'targeted supplements' that segment various consumer demands are being launched one after another. With the consumer base expanding beyond the traditional main consumers in their 50s to 80s to include those in their 20s and 30s, supplements are also diversifying in terms of functions, ingredients, materials, and formulations.

According to iHerb on the 11th, the domestic health functional food market size recently exceeded 5 trillion won. The industry cites the expansion of the consumer base as the main growth driver of the health functional food market, which has shown a steep growth rate of over 20% in the past five years. Accordingly, the industry has recently introduced various products focusing on improving various mental and physical health aspects of modern people, such as fatigue recovery, gut, liver and eye health, antioxidant and anti-aging, joint health improvement, cognitive ability enhancement, and emotional stability.

Consumer interest in supplements is also becoming more segmented. On the portal site 'Supplement Trend Chart,' a variety of ingredients are listed, ranging from familiar ones to domestic consumers such as Omega-3, probiotics, and Boswellia, to less familiar ingredients like lactoferrin, SAMe, resveratrol, ashwagandha, PQQ, and quercetin.

The industry's efforts to evolve health functional foods are extending beyond function segmentation and ingredient diversification to the diversification of materials and formulations. A representative example is the evolution of supplement formulations. Until a few years ago, animal gelatin or animal capsule supplements dominated, but recently, with the increase in vegan consumers, demand for vegan supplements is also steadily rising.

iHerb stated, "We offer various vegan supplements including vegan gummy jellies made from plant-based pectin and plant-based capsule products," adding, "Cruelty-free products that do not use animal testing or animal-derived ingredients, as well as dairy-free, GMO-free, and ketogenic supplements are receiving positive responses from vegan and eco-friendly consumers."

They continued, "Not only supplements but also beauty and food products with vegan, eco-friendly, and cruelty-free attributes are experiencing rapid sales growth," and predicted, "Consumers' 'meaning-out' consumption will continue to expand."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.