Sports nutrition needs muscle

Sports nutrition companies can break into the mainstream food and drinks market if they re-educate consumers - particularly women - about the merits of protein, experts have predicted.

Speaking at a Leatherhead Food International conference, DSM Food Specialties business development manager Dr Stefan Siebrecht said: "Women hate the word muscle. But muscles are a girl's best friend. They don't realise that if they increase lean muscle mass and reduce their body fat, they are going to look a lot better, even if they don't lose weight."

New, more user-friendly forms of protein, such as PeptoPro, DSM's milk protein hydrolysate from casein, would also help alter the perception of protein drinks as heavy and unpalatable, he said. While PeptoPro was best known for boosting endurance and improving recovery time for athletes, its technical properties made it suitable for a broader range of applications, he said.

"If you add whey protein to water, it foams unless you lower the pH. In contrast, you can put PeptoPro in water at 5% and it will go clear whatever the pH. This opens up lots of opportunities to formulate lighter-tasting protein drinks that are more appealing to the mass market."

Most energy drinks were packed with sugar and caffeine, he said. "Why not add protein instead? Why not add it to a ready-to-drink tea or a one-shot drink? Women in particular are looking at products that are easy to drink and low calorie."

While growth in the European sports nutrition market was outpacing growth in the overall food and drink market, it was still a relatively small and fragmented sector, said Christian Eckel, md at consultant Wellness Business Partners. However, it needed the support of a major brand to shift its focus from competitive athletes to 'weekend warriors' and break into the mass market, he said.

"There is no category captain and no pan-European market leader in sports nutrition. Everyone is looking for a big brand owner to come in and give the market a boost!"