The impact of GLP-1 agonist drugs on the food and beverage sector has emerged as a major buzzword over the past year, riding primarily on its immense success in the United States.
In the Asia Pacific region however, progress appears to have been slower due to the combination of a variety of reasons, and some significant hurdles still stand in the way of this drug reaching the same level of success it has in the west.
“The US has been the fastest adopter of GLP-1 largely because of its high obesity rates and a strong consumer preference for solutions that deliver visible results quickly. GLP-1 therapies align well with this mindset, offering relatively rapid weight-loss outcomes compared with traditional diet and lifestyle interventions,” Arla Food Ingredients Director and Head of Asia Pacific Alexander Leufgen said.
“Europe and Oceania are likely to follow given similar health trends yet market approvals and product launches are second to US, while adoption in Asia may be more gradual due to cost, reimbursement, and cultural attitudes toward long-term medication use.”
High potential, yet highly challenging
At the present time, GLP-1 adoption in APAC remains firmly in the early stages, although Leufgen foresees significant long-term potential in the region if implementation is done right.
“While GLP-1 adoption in APAC is attracting growing attention, I have not yet seen evidence of the same level of consumer-driven momentum observed in the US. Most markets remain in the early stages, with awareness growing faster than actual penetration,” he said.
“The key watchpoints here will be pricing, reimbursement and the transition to more convenient oral therapies. I also believe that China shows the greatest long term potential for this, but it also strongly depends on regulatory updates and availability of oral GLP-1 products moving forward.”
But the route towards fulfilling this potential remains fraught with uncertainty at this stage, as many of the main challenges GLP-1 faces here are not yet clearly solvable.
“The main challenges are affordability, reimbursement limitations, healthcare access, and lower awareness in many APAC markets. In addition, obesity rates are generally lower than in the US, reducing the immediate addressable or supported population in some countries,” he said.
Impacts on food
However, China and India recently began producing generic versions of GLP-1 drugs after the Novo Nordisk patent for semaglutide expired, and China is well known to have already developed multiple alternatives to the drug.
All of this is likely to contribute to the lowering of prices and improving accessibility, even though it does not yet solve many of the other considerations such as cultural acceptability, awareness and regulatory roadblocks.
But as the impact of GLP-1 in the industry grows, however gradually, it is not only the weight management segment of the food sector which is likely to be impacted.
According to Leufgen, the most obvious categories that would benefit from this shift include protein-rich foods and beverages, functional nutrition, hydration, healthy ageing solutions, and products that deliver greater nutritional value per serving.
“As GLP-1 users typically consume smaller portions and become more selective about what they eat, there is increased focus on nutrient density and protein intake. This means that some categories will face pressure too, including snacking (if not healthified), confectionery, sugary beverages, and products that rely on high consumption volumes,” he said.
“Fast-food operators may also need to rethink portion sizes, meal composition, and nutritional profiles as consumers shift away from large, calorie-dense meals, and this could have downstream implications for ingredients such as cheese used in burger applications if burger consumption frequency and serving sizes decline over time.”
In short, the impact of GLP-1s on the food sector will be driven by a significant shift in consumer eating behaviour as their hunger and cravings are reduced, calling for greater emphasis on consuming the ‘right’ foods and creating demand for nutrient-dense, protein-rich, and functional nutrition products.
“The opportunity lies in helping consumers obtain more nutrition from smaller portions. This aligns particularly well with dairy proteins, which offer a highly efficient way to deliver quality protein, satiety, and essential nutrients in a compact format,” he added.
“I see significant opportunities across beverages, snacks, healthy ageing, and everyday nutrition, both in APAC and globally, and over time, this trend is likely to influence food innovation and portfolio strategies well beyond the weight-management category too.”
Arla is one of the companies preparing for the arrival of a GLP-1 food era, as is Chinese dairy giant Mengniu, clearly signalling that the long-term opportunity in this space is what food firms need to watch very closely to ensure they are not left behind.
