US Free-from Food Trends Market Report 2019
£ 3,695 (Excl.Tax)
Report Summary
Everything you need to make the right decisions
Providing the most comprehensive and up-to-date information and analysis of the Free-from Foods market, and the behaviours, preferences and habits of the consumer.
Mintel has the answers you’re looking for
What are the key challenges facing the industry? Who is the consumer and what do they want? Where are the opportunities, where are the risks and what lies ahead?
Covered in this report
The purpose of this report is to assess consumer attitudes and
behaviors regarding foods bearing a “free-from” claim, meaning a
food that claims to be free of one or more ingredients. The following
ingredients are discussed throughout this report:
- Added preservatives
- Added sodium
- Added sugar
- Antibiotics
- Artificial ingredients
- Carrageenan
- Common allergens (Dairy, Eggs, Peanuts, Shellfish, Soy, Treenuts, Wheat/gluten)
- FODMAPs
- GMOs
- Grains
- High-fructose corn syrup
- Hormones
- Lactose
- MSG
- Nitrates/nitrites
- Palm oil
- Sulfites
- Trans-fats
Expert analysis from a specialist in the field
Written by Karen Formanski, a leading analyst in the Health and Wellness sector, her extensive knowledge delivers in-depth commentary and analysis to highlight current trends and add expert context to the numbers.
The free-from foods market is growing, and with 62% of consumers avoiding at least one ingredient, it is unlikely to slow in the near future. However, the market faces a number of challenges, such as differing priorities for avoiding ingredients, skepticism over the trustworthiness of the claims, and perceptions that products are expensive and overly processed
Karen Formanski
Health and Wellness Analyst
Table of Contents
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Overview
- What you need to know
- Definition
- What you need to know
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Executive Summary
- The issues
- Strong preferences by age limit broad appeal
- Figure 1: Free-from food claims of importance, by age, April 2019
- Price and trust barriers limit growth of free-from foods
- Figure 2: Select attitudes toward free-from foods, April 2019
- Some consumers simply apathetic toward ingredients
- Figure 3: Select attitudes toward free-from foods, April 2019
- The opportunities
- Healthy lifestyle is the mainstream hook
- Figure 4: Reasons for avoiding certain food/ingredients (net), April 2019
- Overarching label claims can cover diverse needs
- Figure 5: Allergy-friendly and paleo/vegan examples, Enjoy Life and Hu
- Parents have multiple reasons for seeking free from
- Figure 6: Shopping behavior changes over one year ago, by parental status, April 2019
- What it means
- The issues
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The Market – What You Need to Know
- Growing market leads to crowded labels
- Free-from sought across the aisles
- High prices cause roadblocks
- Allergies/intolerances continue to drive free-from market
- Special dieters most prone to avoid grains
- Consumers concerned with ingredients
- Growing market leads to crowded labels
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Market Perspective
- Purchase locations are diversifying
- Consumers seek free-from across the aisles
- Figure 7: Categories where free-from claims are sought, April 2019
- Price remains an obstacle
- Figure 8: Free-from foods are too expensive, by total, age and parental status, April 2019
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- Figure 9: Population aged 18 or older, by age, 2013-23
- Purchase locations are diversifying
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Market Factors
- Allergies/intolerances continue to drive free-from market
- Figure 10: Select food/ingredients avoided due to allergy/intolerance, April 2019
-
- Figure 11: Importance of allergy-friendly claim (any rank – net) by age of children in household, April 2019
- Grains top ingredients avoided due to special diet
- Figure 12: Select food/ingredients avoided due to special diet, April 2019
- Consumers buying more ingredient specific foods
- Figure 13: Shopping behavior changes over one year ago, April 2019
- Allergies/intolerances continue to drive free-from market
-
Key Players – What You Need to Know
- Free-from claims continue to rise; major players see value in the market
- Allergy-friendly brands compete for niche audience; innovative alternative provides boost
- Legacy brands struggle with increased competition
- Claims under scrutiny; overprocessed is undesirable
- Clean label claims on the rise
- FODMAP free gaining traction
- Free-from claims continue to rise; major players see value in the market
-
What’s Working?
- Free-from labels continue to rise
- Figure 14: Percent of food and drink product launches with select free-from claims, 2014 and 2018
- Key players investing in free from
- Acquisitions/investments
- Figure 15: Primal Kitchen and Hu Products product examples
- New product lines
- Figure 16: New free-from product lines from Birds Eye, Barilla and Breyers
- Free-from menu items
- Funding for smaller free-from brands
- Figure 17: Siete Foods grain free and dairy free products
- Gluten-free, allergy-friendly brands compete for niche audience
- Figure 18: Multi-outlet sales of select allergy-friendly and gluten-free products, by companies and brands, rolling 52 weeks 2018 and 2019
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- Figure 19: Allergy-friendly products, Enjoy Life and MadeGood
- Cauliflower brings nutrient density to free-from products
- Figure 20: Select examples of cauliflower pizza crusts
- Free-from labels continue to rise
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What’s Struggling?
- Legacy brands struggle in the face of increased competition
- Figure 21: Multi-outlet sales of select allergy-friendly and gluten-free products, by companies and brands, rolling 52 weeks 2018 and 2019
- Figure 22: Gluten-free product examples, Glutino and Udi’s
- Claims under scrutiny
- Overprocessed is undesirable
- Figure 23: Food and beverage claim importance, April 2019
- Legacy brands struggle in the face of increased competition
-
What’s Next?
- Clean label claims get a boost from free from
- Figure 24: Select products with clean label claims
- FODMAP free gaining traction
- Figure 25: Select FODMAP friendly products
- Figure 26: Interest in FODMAP-free claim, by attitudinal segmentation, April 2019
- Cluster Analysis
- Clean label claims get a boost from free from
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The Consumer – What You Need to Know
- Majority of consumers avoid an ingredient
- Healthy lifestyle top reason for avoiding certain ingredients
- Artificial ingredients, sugar, preservatives cause most concern
- Free-from sought across departments
- Hormones, antibiotics, nitrates/nitrites not desirable
- Free-from purchases increasing
- Desire for transparency drives interest in free from
- Majority of consumers avoid an ingredient
-
Ingredients Avoided
- Most consumers avoid an ingredient
- Ingredients with unhealthy reputation outweigh common allergens
- Figure 27: Food/ingredients avoided, April 2019
-
- Figure 28: Repertoire of foods/ingredients avoided, April 2019
- Younger adults a key consumer for free-from brands
- Figure 29: Repertoire of foods/ingredients avoided, by age, April 2019
- Most consumers avoid an ingredient
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Reasons for Avoiding Ingredients
- Healthy lifestyle broad motive for avoiding ingredients
- Figure 30: Reasons for avoiding certain food/ingredients (net), April 2019
- Age and gender influence reasons for avoidance
- Figure 31: Reasons for avoiding certain food/ingredients (net), by age and gender, April 2019
- The usual suspects seen as obstacles to healthy lifestyle
- Figure 32: Food/ingredients avoided and why, April 2019
- Healthy lifestyle broad motive for avoiding ingredients
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Importance of Prevalent Free-from Claims
- Artificial ingredients, sugar, preservatives cause most concern
- Figure 33: Free-from food claims of importance, April 2019
- Consumers’ age guides attitudes
- Figure 34: Free-from food claims of importance, by age, April 2019
- Artificial ingredients, sugar, preservatives cause most concern
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Importance of Free-from Claims by Product Categories
- Free from sought across departments, meat a top priority
- Figure 35: Categories where free-from claims are sought, April 2019
- Women more reliant on free from
- Figure 36: Categories where free-from claims are sought, by gender, April 2019
- Those who seek free-from snacks have specific concerns
- Figure 37: Select label claims of importance for those who seek free-from claims in snacks, April 2019
- Free from sought across departments, meat a top priority
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Other Free-from Claims of Interest
- Consumers intrigued with a wide spectrum of claims
- Figure 38: Other free-from claims of interest, April 2019
- Hormones, antibiotics, nitrates/nitrites concern for meat eaters
- Figure 39: Select other claims of interest for those who seek free-from claims in meat products, April 2019
- More claims broadens the appeal
- Figure 40: TURF analysis – Other free-from claims of interest, April 2019
- Women are a key target for free-from brands
- Figure 41: Select free-from claims of interest, by gender, April 2019
- Consumers intrigued with a wide spectrum of claims
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Shopping Behavior Changes
- Consumers more concerned with what’s in food than what’s not
- Figure 42: Shopping behavior changes over one year ago, April 2019
- Parents show more change to free-from shopping
- Figure 43: Shopping behavior changes over one year ago, by parental status, April 2019
- Younger adults buying more free-from, organic
- Figure 44: Shopping behavior changes over one year ago, by age, April 2019
- Consumers more concerned with what’s in food than what’s not
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Attitudes toward Free-from Foods
- Consumers feelings are mixed when it comes to free-from
- Figure 45: Attitudes toward free-from foods, April 2019
- Women show openness where men express doubts
- Figure 46: Select attitudes toward free-from foods, by gender, April 2019
- Parents purchase more free-from foods, but also more critical
- Figure 47: Select attitudes toward free-from foods, by parental status, April 2019
- Price remains an obstacle for most consumers
- Figure 48: Free-from foods are too expensive, by age, April 2019
- Consumers feelings are mixed when it comes to free-from
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Free-from Foods Attitudinal Segments
- Cluster Analysis
- Figure 49: Segmentation by attitudes toward free-from foods, April 2019
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- Figure 50: Attitudinal segmentation profiles, by gender, April 2019
- Figure 51: Select ingredients avoided, by attitudinal segmentation, April 2019
-
- Figure 52: Select shopping behavior changes, by attitudinal segmentation, April 2019
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- Figure 53: Select attitudinal statements, by attitudinal segmentation, April 2019
- Cluster Analysis
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Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
- Data sources
- Sales data
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Data sources
-
Appendix – The Consumer
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- Figure 54: Correspondence Analysis – Symmetrical map – Food/ingredients avoided, April 2019
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About the report
This market report provides in-depth analysis and insight supported by a range of data. At the same time, introductory and top-level content is provided to give you an overview of the issues covered.
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