The sports nutrition market has been a supplement industry success story in recent years. Research firm Fact.MR valued the global market at $34.8 billion in 2020, with a predicted $67.9bn by 2030. This amounts to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.4% from 2021 to 2030.4
Its success may be due to the sheer product range that caters to everyone of all ages looking to improve their physical and mental health, with products offering optimal gains in weight training, faster recovery between workouts, reduced injury risk, and performance consistency.
However, bone and joint health now joins the ranks of categories that offer benefits to consumers taking an interest in a maintenance and preventative approach.
“Traditionally, the bone and joint health category has been associated with older adults,” says Dr Elizabeth Thundow, vice-president of consulting for chemicals, materials, and nutrition at the global consultancy and research firm Frost and Sullivan.
“However, more recently, the category has been witnessing growing interest from younger consumers. For example, the demand is apparent among consumers aged between 25 and 35, particularly among customers who lead an active, healthy lifestyle.”
Products in this category are characterised by established ingredients such as collagen, vitamins, and minerals, with a recent shift to products containing botanicals such as curcumin and ginger.
Innova Market Insights identified a 47% average annual growth in supplements for joint health, tracked between 2017 to 2021, with key ingredients including turmeric, beetroot, and curcumin in sports nutrition launches.5
Examples of finished products in this space include PeScience’s TruRecover, a polyphenol-rich supplement that blends tart cherry powder and lemon verbena extract to support joint and muscle recovery in athletes.6
UK-based fitness brand MyProtein sells its The Joint supplement, containing turmeric, Boswellia serrata (also known as Indian frankincense), black pepper, and vitamins B and C as active ingredients.7
In October 2021, US-based Life Extension added to its joint support range with the launch of Joint Mobility, a combination of turmeric and tamarind extracts that it says encourages a healthy inflammatory response, supports joint comfort, and promotes knee flexibility and overall movement.8
