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A diverse range of American consumers are increasingly focused on weight loss and weight maintenance within a broadening context of personal health and lifestyle issues. Almost 70% of adults and almost 32% of school-age children and adolescents are either overweight or obese, according to the latest government statistics. And some studies project that if current trends continue, 37% of U.S. adults will be classified as obese by 2013 and 43% by 2018.

With such new and ever-more-alarming statistics about adult and childhood obesity feeding the headlines almost daily, what are today’s weight loss regimens and weight maintenance mindsets? What roles do calories, portion control, and satiety play, with or without the benefit of weight management programs, fitness club memberships and “active lifestyles”? What are the most salient cohorts of weight management consumers, and which combinations of foods and beverages, weight management programs, and diet aids appeal most specifically to them? Which media and marketing messages resonate for these cohorts, and in what contexts?

This all-new report from Packaged Facts examines not just who the weight management cohorts are, but the all-important “why’s” behind the choices and purchases they make, and where those choices will take the market through 2015, identifying the issues and trends affecting the weight management marketplace. Focusing on consumer lifestyle trends through customized analysis of Experian Simmons data, the report examines consumers’ weight management strategies, goals and attitudes toward foods and beverages; use of over-the-counter diet aids, weight management programs, and exercise; retail channel and foodservice preferences; and media usage and responsiveness, both traditional and social. The report also examines the competitive strategies of key players, new product and ingredient trends, and marketing and advertising positioning, all within the context of the medical, social, economic, and psychographic drivers of consumer behavior.

Additional data sources include the latest government statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Information Resources, Inc.’s InfoScan Review for the mass-market channel; and Datamonitor’s Product Launch Analytics data tracking new product introductions.

Read an excerpt from this report below.

Additional Information

Market Insights: A Selection From The Report

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Top Claims on New Products Overall: Upscale, Natural, Single Serving

Packaged Facts’ analysis of Product Launch Analytics data show that “upscale,” “natural,” and “single serving” were by far the package tags marketers used most often in introducing new foods and beverages in the United States throughout the 2005-2009 period, with each of these claims/tags in the thousands. By comparison, the leading weight management claim, “low calories,” is in the 12th position in 2009, with 541 mentions, and “low fat” ranks No. 19 with 369 citings. Other weight management claims do not make it onto the top-20 claims/tags list. [Table 4-8]

Low Calories, Low Fat the Top Claims

Package claims/tags positioning new foods as being low in calories, followed by low in fat, were the top weight management claims/tags on new food and beverage products in 2009, although such introductions were lower than the previous year. “Low calorie” took the lead from “low-fat” in 2008; “low fat” was the leading weight management claim between 2005 and 2007.

“Low carbohydrates,” in third position (293 mentions) among weight management claims at the height of the Atkins craze in 2005, dropped precipitously the following year and since then has been near the bottom of the list. Only 69 mentions of new products with “low carbohydrates” positioning appeared in 2009. [Tables 4-9 and 4-10]

Consumer Attitudes/Opinions Toward Foodservice

Weight management consumers are also more likely than consumers in general to enjoy dining out as a leisure activity—more than two-thirds of WL consumers and 65% of WM consumers enjoy dining out, vs. 57% of all consumers—for indexes of 120 and 115, respectively. Because they are watching their diet, it is not surprising that approximately 64% of WL and WM consumers like the trend toward healthier fast food (indexes 128 and 126), although WM consumers are far less likely than average to agree that fast food fits their busy lifestyle (index 75, or 25% below the norm) or that they prefer fast food to home cooking (index 83, or 17% below average). WL consumers, meanwhile, are less likely than average to agree that eating fast food helps them stay within their financial budget. [Table 5-3]

In the News

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Weight Management Makes Big Impression on Increasingly Health Conscious Americans

New York, April 12, 2010 — With two-thirds of U.S. adults and almost one-third of children and adolescents overweight or obese, a diverse range of consumers are increasingly focused on weight loss and weight maintenance within a broadening context of personal health and lifestyle issues, according to Weight Management Trends in the U.S. by market research publisher Packaged Facts.
The shift toward weight management and healthy habits as priorities at the forefront of consumer consciousness are expected to gain momentum as the nation slips further into a semblance of economic relief from the fiscal ravaging of the recession.

“Industry experts and Packaged Facts agree that healthy eating is a solid measure of consumer confidence,” says Don Montuori, publisher of Packaged Facts. “As the economy improves, consumers will once again focus on health and wellness priorities.”

Packaged Facts estimates the global weight loss and diet management market—including diet food and drinks, weight loss programs and services, weight loss drugs and natural therapies, and surgical interventions—reached $26 billion in 2009. Diet food and drinks—consisting of weight loss bars and snacks, drinks, frozen meals, and diet desserts—was the largest category, with $18 billion, or 73%, of total worldwide sales.

Developing foods and beverages that provide satiety, or hunger satisfaction, is projected to be one of the hottest trends in weight management. Such products contain ingredients that enhance feelings of pleasant fullness after eating, helping dieters prevent overeating and/or constant snacking between meals. And though “minus” formulations of foods and beverages—i.e., low-, no-, or reduced-calorie/fat/carbohydrates/sugar formulations—continue to dominate weight management products, there currently is a subtle shift toward tinkering with formulations to add functional ingredients that can help people lose and maintain weight. Many of these same functional ingredients are being used in dietary supplements and over-the-counter weight management drugs.

Beyond the toll obesity takes on an individual’s health, it also places a financial burden on the nation’s healthcare system. As a result, obesity has emerged as a political problem that federal, state, and local governments are attempting to legislate away. Perhaps the most ostentatious effort to date has been the Obama Administration’s Let’s Move program that targets the troubling trend of childhood obesity by bringing together several federal agencies to focus on improving nutrition and encouraging exercise.

Weight Management Trends in the U.S. examines not just who the weight management cohorts are, but the all-important “why’s” behind the choices and purchases they make, and where those choices will take the market through 2015, identifying the issues and trends affecting the weight management marketplace. Focusing on consumer lifestyle trends through customized analysis of Experian Simmons data, the report examines consumers’ weight management strategies, goals and attitudes toward foods and beverages; use of over-the-counter diet aids, weight management programs, and exercise; retail channel and foodservice preferences; and media usage and responsiveness, both traditional and social. The report also examines the competitive strategies of key players, new product and ingredient trends, and marketing and advertising positioning, all within the context of the medical, social, economic, and psychographic drivers of consumer behavior.

About Packaged Facts - Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, publishes market intelligence on a wide range of consumer market topics, including consumer goods and retailing, foods and beverages, demographics, pet products and services, and financial products. Packaged Facts also offers a full range of custom research services.

Additional Materials

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State of the market: After Atkins and beyond

WeightManagement2010 sponsored by FoodNavigator, delivered the first one-day virtual event on the latest trends and strategies in weight management for the food, beverage and dietary supplements industries.
Did you miss the LIVE event on demand? Luckily for those who missed the live event, the show is still available on demand until Thursday March 4th 2011. Access from here: www.weightmanagementshow.com

Inside, check out the 'State of the market: After Atkins and beyond' conference presented by Packaged Facts' VP Publishing, Don Montuori. The weight management market is estimated by some to be worth nearly $20bn. This presentation will chart the rise of the weight management sector, with special focus on dietary programs to achieve weight management, from Atkins to GI and Weight Watchers. Such programs have attracted big consumer followings, and some manufacturers are getting on board by producing ranges of reduced fat and reduced sugar foods. This session looks at understanding the success and failures of current programs and how to predict the next big thing.

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