On November 17, the Insight Report on Market Trend of China Sugar-Free Beverage in 2021 (hereinafter referred to as the Report) was released by the Key Laboratory of Big Data Mining and Knowledge Management of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which predicted that the market size of sugar-free beverage would double in the next five years and would be increased to 22.74 billion Yuan in 2025.

The Report showed that the domestic market size of sugar-free beverage maintained a sustained growth momentum. In 2020, the market size reached 11.78 billion Yuan, with an increase of 7 times compared with that of 2014. The market is expected to increase to 22.74 billion Yuan in 2025, doubling its size within 5 years. In 2027, the market size will continue to climb to 27.6 billion Yuan.

The Market Size and Prediction of Sugar-free Beverages

Unit: the market size of sugar-free beverage (Hundred Million Yuan)

Sugar-free beverages are divided into sugar-free carbonated beverages, sugar-free coffee and tea beverages, sugar-free sports beverages and sugar-free/low-sugar plant protein beverages. Among them, sugar-free sparkling water is also an important kind of the carbonated beverages. Sparkling water accounts for a large proportion of carbonated beverages in various countries. China's market of sparkling water currently accounts for about 7% of carbonated beverages, while that of the United States can reach 11%, and that of Japan has reached 21%. China's categories of sparkling water still have great potential in the future.

Among all kinds of sugar-free beverages, sugar-free carbonated beverages including sugar-free sparkling water and sugar-free cola, have the highest growth rate. In 2014, the market size of sugar-free carbonated beverages was only about 600 million Yuan, while it reached 6.69 billion Yuan, accounting for 56.8% of the overall market.

However, the market size of sugar-free carbonated beverages was lower than that of sugar-free coffee and tea beverages before 2017. From 2020 to 2021, the launch of a variety of new sugar-free sparkling water continues to promote the rapid development of sugar-free carbonated beverages.

As a fast-growing emerging category, sugar-free beverages are currently showing a trend of homogenized competition in ingredients, flavors, and product selling points. The Report pointed out that not adding preservatives has become a topic of concern for enterprises and the public. In order to satisfy consumers' concerns about "health", preservatives will become the main point of competition for beverage brands in the future. Nearly 80% of consumers choose sugar-free beverages, because they are "healthier" rather than having a clear demand for sugar control. The increase in sugar-free beverage products has made consumers' selection criteria more stringent. Many careful consumers have developed the habit of paying attention to the product ingredients list and nutrition information. Under such trend, reducing or eliminating the use of preservatives will become a key point of competition in the market of sugar-free beverages in the future.

Source: Sina

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