The sports food supplement market - Germany

Food complements are aggregations of various substances (vitamins, minerals, plant extracts, etc.) in an eatable or drinkable form that have a nutritional effect, as defined in Directive 2002/46/EC of the European Parliament. They can be looked at as the bridge between food and medicine drugs. They are intended to complement food while avoiding consumers to be compelled to take drugs.

Athletes, whether athletes or casuals, often have a much more demanding lifestyle than non-athletes. Their daily requirements, especially for minerals, proteins, and carbohydrates, are higher than those of inactive individuals. With the help of nutritional supplements, you can :

• Compensate for their nutritional deficiencies,
• Improve your performance before, during, and after exercise.

There are three major categories of food complements for athletes :

• Those that affect health. They provide nutrients that may be lacking in the body due to an unbalanced diet,
• Those taken during training. They are used to maintain or even improve performance for a while,
• Those that enable better recovery.

On a global scale, the nutritional supplements market reached a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.78% between 2018 and 2020. It is expected to continue to grow at a CAGR of 13.6% through 2026.[researchdive.com]

Sales are also steadily increasing in Germany. A study by IQVIA shows that sales of diet supplements in drugstores have grown by an average of 5.8% (CAGR) per year over the past five years. In the first half of 2020, growth even increased to 7.7% [Deutsche Apotheker Zeitung].

The following study deals with current trends and challenges in the industry. Furthermore, the market structure but also the competition details are analyzed, to present insightful information.