Singapore, January 16, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Kerry Group, a global leader in flavors and nutrition, has released the “2026 Flavor Map for Nutritional Supplements” for the Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions, highlighting the evolving taste preferences of consumers in these areas, as well as the rise of flavor innovation-driven and lifestyle-led nutritional supplements and sports nutrition products.
Consumers are moving away from traditional pills toward more flavour-forward formats such as gummies.
In the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa regions, nutritional supplements are increasingly regarded as a part of daily health management rather than occasional health aids. Consumer concerns include improving sleep, enhancing immunity, promoting digestion, managing stress, supplementing energy, and balancing emotions, while the taste and texture of products have now become key factors influencing continuous purchase and long-term use.
The global nutritional supplements market is expected to reach a scale of 107 billion USD by 2029, with the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa regions continuing to show strong growth momentum. Driven by increased health awareness, increasingly busy lifestyles, and growing personalized nutrition needs, China, India, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East are becoming the main driving forces for market expansion.
Flavor Innovation Trends Reshape the Supplement Market Landscape
Consumers are gradually abandoning traditional tablet forms in favor of more flavor-attractive product formats such as jelly gummies, chewable tablets, drink powders, instant sticks, and composite powders. In this shift, flavor plays a key role: it can effectively mask the bitterness of functional ingredients, strengthen emotional connections, and convey perceptions of natural health or efficacy. The Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions highlight three core flavor trends:
Simple and Authentic
Consumers increasingly favor products with transparent ingredients and authentic raw materials. Flavor designs derived from natural ingredients, botanical herbs, fermented flavors, and a sweet and slightly sour taste convey a concept of simplicity that is pure and nutritionally dense. Flavors such as citrus, pomelo, ginger, turmeric, matcha, elderflower, fermented dairy products, and yogurt are highly sought after. These flavors naturally align with the current convenient lifestyle-friendly product forms, effectively enhancing the perceived health value of the products through flavor design.
Category Crossover
With the blurring of meal times and changes in lifestyle pace, consumers no longer stick to traditional boundaries of food, beverages, or supplements categories. The category crossover trend highlights the rise of unconventional hybrid products: savory energy bars, candy-inspired supplements, coffee-flavored enhancers, and other innovative forms continue to emerge. These hybrid products, through creative dosage forms and unconventional combinations, reflect the diverse evolution of contemporary dietary habits.
Ultimate Flavors
Driven by young consumer groups, the ultimate flavor trend will dominate in 2026 — they seek bold flavor combinations with rich layers and strong sensory impact. Flavor designs such as dessert styles, high acidity intensity, spicy accents, as well as complex flavor overlays like tiramisu passion fruit and brownie chocolate, create impressive high-intensity taste experiences. This trend reshapes supplements into a pleasurable part of life rather than a functional burden.
Against this trend, the sports nutrition market continues to expand from professional athletes to active consumers who pursue both functionality and flavor. The minimalist original taste is reflected in refreshing citrus-flavored hydration formulas, herbal extract recovery drinks, and high-protein systems with natural dairy flavors; category crossovers have given rise to coffee-flavored energy products, soda-inspired electrolyte drinks, and fruit-flavored energy concentrates; extreme flavors are highlighted in pre-workout supplements with intense sour and spicy tastes, as well as protein shake complex flavor designs with rich layers.
Olivier De Salmiech, Vice President of Health and Therapeutics Business for Kerry Group in Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa, stated: “Consumers in Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa have higher demands for proactive health products, requiring not only clinically proven efficacy but also appealing flavor experiences. When products combine excellent taste, scientifically validated efficacy, and natural integration into daily life, they elevate into the health rituals that consumers look forward to.” (Source: Kerry Group)
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