GlobalData report reveals demand for natural ingredients in Asia-Pacific market

A GlobalData report says that hot beverage manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region must capitalise on the demand for hot drinks infused with natural ingredients to stay ahead of their competitors. The data and analytics company’s report, Opportunities in the Asia-Pacific Hot Drinks Sector: Analysis of Opportunities Offered by High Growth Economies, forecasts the market to register a compound annual growth rate of 6.3 per cent from US$159.3 billion in 2017 to US$215.9 billion in 2022. “Time-pressed millennials, who are open to experimenting with new flavours, are increasingly looking for hot drinks infused with natural ingredients such as ginger, tulsi (holy basil), cardamom and mint, which are known to be natural antioxidants, and black sesame powder, which is perceived to offer anti-aging benefits,” says Syed Khaleelulla, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData. “[Furthermore,] APAC consumers, who are frequently on-the-move, are driving the demand for hot drinks with packaging solutions that facilitate on-the-go consumption. Therefore, manufacturers must focus on launching drinks made with natural ingredients in convenient and efficient packaging solutions.” Khaleelulla says this is supported by the company’s 2018 third quarter consumer survey, where 63 per cent of Asian consumers stated that non-alcoholic beverages, which impact their health and wellbeing, always/often influence their product choice. In terms of categories, hot tea held the largest share, accounting for 57.4 per cent of total value sales, followed by hot coffee at 36.8 per cent in 2017. According to GlobalData, the share of hot tea is expected to increase to 60.7 per cent by 2022. During the same period, hot coffee’s share is forecast to decline to 33.8 per cent while the share of other hot drinks is expected to marginally drop to 5.5 per cent.