Health kick opens new drinks opportunities

New research from CGA by NielsenIQ shows how growing interest in healthy living among consumers is creating fresh potential for drinks brands in Ireland’s on-trade.

Covid has sharpened consumers’ awareness of wellbeing and data from CGA’s Opus research reveals that nearly a third (31%) think it’s now more important to lead a healthy lifestyle than it was in 2021. This is opening space for drinks brands that can meet consumers’ health needs. One in eight (12%) now consider it more important that their drink is healthy than was the case a year ago.
There’s particularly high potential in the NoLo drinks category which now accounts for 8% of total Long Alcoholic Drinks sales.

Well over a third (38%) of consumers plan to drink non-alcoholic drinks more frequently over the next 12 months compared to just 10% who think they’ll drink less. A quarter (26%) now buy non-alcoholic drinks most times that they visit the on-trade and 17% do so on every visit.
Other drinks categories well placed to benefit include Hard Seltzers. While sales are currently only worth 0.1% of the total LAD market, they’ve already generated €500,000 in Ireland’s on-trade in the first quarter of 2022.
“We’ve seen around the world that many consumers have become much more tuned in to health issues since the start of the pandemic and that’s clearly reflected in their drinking choices,” says Sian Brennan, CGA’s client director for Ireland, “With a willing consumer base to tap into, educating people about categories like Hard Seltzers and no and low alcohol beer and spirits is going to be important. “Understanding what Ireland’s health-conscious consumers are looking for and their paths to purchase can pave the way to growth in this exciting area of the market.”