Value of health and energy drinks retail market in India 2015-2020

In 2015, the value of health and energy drinks retail market in India was around 15 billion Indian rupees. It was expected that this niche segment would burgeon to over 50 billion rupees by 2020, indicating the wave of change sweeping the country’s food market. The average Indian consumer has been increasingly turning to healthier food options over the past years. In fact, according to a 2018 survey on health-conscious behavior among Indians, over 60 percent of the respondents said they were careful to eat healthily.

Preference for milk-based health drinks

Long and erratic working hours coupled with a growing awareness of functional food products have led to a spur in the health and energy drink market in the country. However, unlike many other countries where the consumers opt for caffeine-based energy drinks, Indian consumers prefer protein-based drinks. This is evident by the fact that in 2017, the children’s nutritional drink manufacturer, Horlicks , had 45 percent of the health food drink market share, followed by Bournvita trailing at 18 percent.

A people powered by chai

However, chai and coffee still seem to trump any health or energy drink in India. As per a 2018 study on beverages preferably consumed by the average Indian, it was found that over 65 percent of respondents regularly consumer tea. On the other hand, only 24 percent of respondents stated that they regularly consumed energy drinks.