PUBLISHER: Packaged Facts | PRODUCT CODE: 1340781
PUBLISHER: Packaged Facts | PRODUCT CODE: 1340781
Energy and sports drinks account for the largest segment of the overall functional beverage market, representing over half of functional beverage sales in 2023.
Energy drinks purport to provide functional benefits including increased energy and boosts in cognitive function/brain activity. They contain stimulant ingredients, typically caffeine, and claim to provide mental and physical energy. Some of these beverages are carbonated or sweetened, and they tend to contain other functional ingredients such as taurine, guarana, panax, L-carnitine, and ginseng for energy and focus.
Sports drinks are used for enhanced hydration and sports performance. These products typically contain electrolytes, and they are made to hydrate efficiently before, during, or after exercising. They tend to contain salt, minerals, and sometimes sugar to help replenish the body's natural concentration of these substances.
Energy and sports drinks have a more mature market than many other functional beverages. Some of the top sports and energy drink brands (e.g., Gatorade, Powerade, Red Bull) have been marketed for decades, although there is still room for expansion in these product segments. Unlike other functional beverages, traditional versions of energy drinks and sports drinks may not have an especially healthy perception among consumers due to concerns about added sugar content, energy crashes, or lack of nutritional value.
Many newer introductions to the market go beyond traditional formulations and have better-for-you claims compared to standard energy and sports drink formulations to address the desire for products that are more healthy or have additional functional features.
The US sports and energy drink market is projected to expand at an average rate of 6.4% annually, reaching $45.9 billion in 2027. Sales of sports and energy drinks posted robust gains from 2020 to 2022. Volumes were buoyed by increased consumer awareness and adoption, faster than average grocery sales, and new product introductions, while average prices rose due to both inflation and premiumization.
Scope of the Report
This Packaged Facts report analyzes the dynamics of the current landscape of the sports and energy drink market. Consumer demographics, perceptions, motivations, and behavior pertaining to sports and energy drinks and attitudes on food, diet, health, and product packaging are taken into account. Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumers are also analyzed in a broad sense, as well as in the context of buying/using sports and energy drinks.