Gluten-free leads free-from surge into the mainstream

Interest in free-from foods is continuing to rise globally, led in part by the growing availability of gluten-free lines. Products positioned on a gluten-free platform accounted for 10 percent of total global food and drinks launches recorded by Innova Market Insights in the 12 months ending April, and accounted for more than 18 percent of such launches in the United States.

“This is partly due to improved labeling regulations, but also to rising awareness of gluten intolerance in the diet and the development of more mainstream and good-tasting gluten-free products across a whole range of food and drinks sectors," said Lu Ann Williams, director of innovation for Innova Market Insights, based in the Netherlands.

Key areas for activity in recent years have been bakery items, cereal products and snack foods, largely because of rising demand for alternatives to the relatively high number of gluten-containing lines in these sectors or because of the availability of alternative gluten-free ingredients, Innova Market Insights said. The cereal products market, encompassing both breakfast cereals and cereal bars, is relatively well set up to cater to the gluten-free trend, the company added, with numerous non-gluten cereal options already available. In fact, the share of gluten-free launches in the cereals market is much higher than the average of the food and drinks market as a whole, at 21 percent globally, rising to 43 percent in the United States.

Interestingly, despite being one of the product categories most strongly associated with wheat and thus gluten, the bakery products sector has a slightly lower-than-average share of gluten-free launches recorded, at 9 percent, perhaps partly reflecting the diversity of the sector and the high levels of new product activity overall the company said. The actual number of gluten-free bakery launches, however, has risen consistently in recent years. Biscuits (e.g., cookies) account for the largest number of gluten-free bakery launches, at more than 40 percent, equivalent to 8 percent of total biscuit introductions. Bread accounts for less than 16 percent of gluten-free bakery launches, meanwhile, and 9 percent of total bread introductions.

The snack market is also seeing a relatively high proportion of launches featuring gluten-free claims, averaging 13 percent globally, but rising to more than 42 percent in the United States, Innova Market Insights pointed out. In terms of product and market development, the snack market benefits particularly from the fact that many basic snacks ingredients such as potatoes, corn, soy and nuts are naturally gluten-free, so it is a claim that is relatively easy to achieve in many instances. Ingredients used to replace wheat or other cereals and offer a gluten-free formulation over the past few years have included lentils, black beans, navy beans, cassava, brown rice, nuts, sweet potatoes and a wide variety of other vegetables.

Many other areas of the food and drink market are also seeing rising levels of interest in gluten-free reformulations, or even in just emphasizing the gluten-free nature of existing lines.

“Gluten intolerance is no longer the only reason for buying gluten-free foods,” Williams said. "With more labeling of gluten-free foods and the growing availability of a range of high quality products with a good sensory profile, the sector seems set to take further advantage of the huge potential market for this type of product."