Infant formula market set to reach $98bn by 2025

The infant formula market is set to grow from its current market value of more than $52 billion (€46.6bn) to over $98 billion (€87.8bn) by 2025; according to a new research report by Global Market Insights.

Increased demand for baby nutrition resulting from consistent population growth will reinforce the global infant formula market, with evolving lifestyles of parents influencing their purchasing behavior as well as the availability of essential products.

As more women are now working and have busier lives, they need healthy but ready-to-make baby food. The infant formula industry has gained traction specifically on account of modern mothers wanting various products offered that contain necessary ingredients like proteins, minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates and fats. These products are being considered as a suitable alternative to human milk and increasing awareness about baby health will thus further drive the market demand.

Rapid proliferation of the infant formula market has also stemmed from favorable regulations on the production and quality of products. The US FDA categorises infant formula under its Federal Food and Drug and Cosmetics act, citing various added requirements and minimum needed concentration of various vital nutrients infused in the formula. The FDA apparently carries out inspection of manufacturing facilities where formula is made, ensuring the quality and safety of every batch of product released. Similar monitoring of facilities and implementation of food regulations globally will boost the confidence in product quality among consumers, fueling the infant formula industry expansion.

Specialty infant formulas are emerging as a novel application area in baby healthcare, as they are designed to address different ailments a baby can suffer, including galactosemia, reflux, spit up or lactose-intolerance. Augmented consumption of specialty formulas will certainly accelerate development of the infant formula market, in concurrence with the explosion in consumer purchasing power. The presence of large supermarket chains worldwide has made products easily accessible to majority of customers as well as helped to propagate their benefits. The Asia-Pacific (APAC) infant formula market, projected to record more than 10% CAGR over 2019-2025, will particularly advance through in-store product sales.

Elaborating further, although e-commerce has garnered tremendous momentum in APAC, most parents in the region are expected to purchase baby food in the traditional way, in convenience stores and supermarkets. The region has experienced massive rise in the number of supermarket chains over the last few decades, where both domestic and international brands have established a foothold and loyal customer base. Anticipated to surpass a population of 4.7 billion by 2025, Asia will undoubtedly represent the biggest target base for infant formula industry players, in turn providing lucrative prospects for supermarkets to leverage on the incessant consumption of a crucial food product category.

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