Gym usage and overall fitness activity have increased significantly compared to pre-pandemic levels. Gym memberships are on the rise, and more people are actively participating in both in-person fitness classes and home workouts. However, this growing interest in fitness has also been accompanied by rising prices for certain products, particularly whey protein.
Reflecting on the evolution of the supplement industry since his start in the 1990s, Vigeant highlighted how negative perceptions of soy and issues with rice protein paved the way for alternatives like pea protein. The rise of health-conscious consumers and a shift away from allergens like dairy have made plant proteins increasingly popular, with brands like PlantFusion capitalizing on this trend.
With a growing number of Americans identifying as vegetarian and vegan and many more flexing between plant-based and omnivorous diets, Vigeant said the industry stands at an exciting crossroads of innovation and growth. He emphasized the growing acceptance of plant-based diets among mainstream audiences, underscoring a significant market transformation.
While many forms of alternative proteins have been around for a while, Vigeant said they’ve been difficult to really commercialize.
“Obviously, pea and rice are two of the most popular,” he said. “We don’t use rice mainly because it’s very high in heavy metals, but as those two have been the main ones for a while, we’re seeing other ones like chickpea are becoming more and more popular all the time, and there are different suppliers of chickpea coming online.”
Vigeant noted a growing trend toward diverse, innovative plant-based dietary options, meeting both taste and nutritional needs.
“Chickpea protein will continue to come to the market, and I think you’ll see more and more of it being used, which we already do see, for food applications because of the functional benefits or qualities of the chickpea protein,” he said. “Other ones that are out there on the periphery that are still commercially available are lupin; pumpkin protein is consistently popping up. We’ve even seen watermelon protein.”
When it comes to tariffs, Vigeant said it’s situational, and it all comes down to the individual ingredient and where they’re coming from.
“On pea protein, we’re getting a lot of ours from Europe, so it’s been a very minimal impact, but if we were buying a lot from China, it would have a very tangible impact,” he said. “This is one of those things where we’ve all seen ups and downs of supply chain because, let’s say, crop situations like cocoa in the last couple of years, it’s impacted everybody that uses cocoa, even for protein powders, chocolate, et cetera, manufacturers—a huge impact for a whole bunch of reasons.
“I think what we haven’t seen are across the board tariffs that go into effect this quickly, so I’ll be able to tell you some great stories hopefully a year from now about how we got through it.”
To hear more on where the plant protein market is headed, listen to the NutraCast.
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