Food companies are scrambled to meet the madness of high protein

Several months ago, Andy started playing with the fitness app. It recommended that it greatly increases the amount of protein.

The hard part was to do this without increasing calories.

“So I started trying to find high protein alternatives to the things I was already consumed,” she explained.

This included yogurt, milk, coffee, grains and pasta.

“I realized that everything was greatly tasted for me, and I began to actively search for these products.”

So it was excited when the series of Canadian Lati Restaurants presented a high protein earlier this year. Andy, who did not want to give her her title, drinks them without sweetening, describing him as a “decent” product.

Is it a more expensive diet?

Live in Vancouver, Andy says the prices are already high. “High protein is usually a few additional dollars, so it is not a big difference.”

Like Andy, you may have noticed on the supermarkets and restaurant lists of high protein madness sweeping the food sector.

Surveillance studies of consumers are increasingly interested in protein content in their food.

In the United States between March 2024 and March 2025, there was 4.8 % growth in product sales that describe itself as protein rich, compared to the previous year, according to Nielseniq Research Group.

Milk was one of the beneficiaries of protein madness.

Last year witnessed the first increase in milk consumption since 2009, according to data from US Department of Agriculture.

This is partly attributed to protein enthusiasm.

The movement of the so -called point to the point includes products such as cows colostrum, and the cows of protein -rich milk are produced shortly after birth.

The direction of the protein was particularly driven by the availability of the expanded protein of whey, and it is usually a secondary result of the production of cheese. Whey protein is a billion dollar sector that continues to grow.

While the dairy is well met, the vegetable alternatives to dairy products go through some lean times.

Milk alternative sales began to decrease, mainly driven by the decrease in consumption in the Americas. Almond milk in particular loses the market share.

The slowdown in sales is reflected in the slowdown of gossip online. While the United States is looking for “oat milk” the number of Google search operations exceeds “whole milk” in 2020, in 2025, it was reversed. People are more looking for different types of cow’s milk now more than ever.

One of the causes is the natural perceived food of cows, including collagen and beef.

According to Celsinick, the global market value of Milk is eight times more than milk alternatives ($ 69.3 billion; 50.8 billion pounds, compared to $ 8.4 billion; 6.2 billion pounds).

The market value of milk also grows much faster.

Plant -based manufacturers respond to high protein drinks by mentioning more protein on their packages, and reformulating their products to include more protein.

They often feel frustrated by nutritionists from protein enthusiasm. They repeatedly indicate that most of the population of rich countries already consumes more protein than they need.

Exceptions for certain groups, including severe malnutrition, the elderly, women who are going through menopause, and people with chronic inflammation.

Federica Amati is a research colleague at the College of Public Health at the Imperial College London College. She is also the main nutritionist of the Zoe nutrition company.

Doctor Amati worries that “people are retracted by thinking about” a high protein “on the poster that necessarily means that it is in good health. Frankly, it is another healthy aura.”

While excessive protein consumption is unlikely to harm most people, “protein consumption is more than your body during middle age can be associated with increasing the risk of multiple diseases, including cancer”, warns Dr. Amati.

“There is an important point in this, however, is that the plant sources of protein do not seem to increase the risk of cancer.”

Because most people do not have unlimited money to spend on food, products with high protein may be from unhelpful distraction.

“The Fresh While Foods price rises, so shoppers are better off than buying more full foods, and the high standard standard of Greek yogurt without a mark.” “And remember that most of us can get a lot of protein that we need if we eat enough whole foods.”

If anything should be considered as a hero nutrient, according to many nutritionists, the fiber should be instead of protein.

Dr. Amati believes: “The popularity of high protein products in general due to marketing. Manufacturers can easily [and cheaply] Add additional protein to its products and multiply the price. “

Business responds to this request.

At French French Verley, there is a shiny row of stainless steel tanks, named fermentation, carrying microorganisms that are fed on sugars.

In the end, they will produce beta -lactogloboline, a protein found in a whey.

The team in Virley, a French startup, will purify protein, including lactose extraction.

The end result is a high -protein powder mainly dairy, but Verley says it is suitable for vegetarians as there are no cows.

This process is both traditional and sophisticated, it is believed that Stéphane Mac Millan, CEO of Verley.

On the one hand, fermentation has a long history of French food culture, including in the manufacture of cheese.

On the other hand, Verley wants to update dairy by sharpening nutritional benefits while reducing environmental effects. Dairy production requires large amounts of water and land, with large amounts of greenhouse gases generate.

“The goal is to help the dairy industry in moving to the twenty -first century,” says Mac Milan.

Mr. Mac Millan is betting that consumers who realize nutrition will grow increasingly not only about getting enough whey protein, but about obtaining specific forms of it.

He says that some American consumers are now searching for beta -lactoglobolin, which is high in liocyin amino acids, instead of non -specific whey protein.

Mr. Mac Millan believes that the increasing number of people who use weight loss may also help to push the company’s growth. People interested in muscle loss may quickly reach high protein products.

He admits that Virley’s protein will be more expensive than whey protein in the beginning. “But given that we bring more to the table and we are sustainable, it is natural that there is a bonus.”

The company also hopes to reduce costs with a larger size. It is currently seeking organizational approval in various countries.

In general, when it comes to nutrition, the general public is likely to listen to friends, families and influencers more than experts like him, Jack Bobo, CEO of the Rochd Family Institute for Food Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

This is partially related to the ambitious nature of many fitness content on social media, especially targeting young people. Most viewers and listeners are not athletes from the elite, but many of them seek to eat and drink as if they were.

One of the difficulties is that consumers are somewhat volatile. Soymilk is among the cheapest and highest alternative Aleppo, however it has lost the new arrivals even with the condensation of the protein madness.

Social media moves faster than people who make or organize food.

Currently, it seems to be a business that focus on protein – whether it is really useful or not.