Functional, clean label trends drive growth of vegetable juices, juice smoothies
Consumers are looking for beverages with no added sugar, and functional and clean ingredients. This has presented challenges for some juice manufacturers.
As consumers demand more better-for-you products, experts note that the juice and juice drinks category has been challenged in a unique way and struggled to maintain its share of the beverage market.
“The juice/juice drinks sector has struggled during the past year,” said Susan Viamari, vice president of Thought Leadership at Chicago-based Information Resources Inc. (IRI). “Volume declined 1.8%, while dollar sales inched up just 0.8%. Juice drink concentrates saw the largest slide (volume down 49.8%; dollars down 24.1%), while performance was strongest in bottled juices (volume down 0.5%; dollars up 2.2%).”