U.S. NBJ market data shows that the U.S. herbal and plant raw materials market will grow by 17.3% in 2020. Specifically, it is mainly subdivided into the following product categories:
In 2020, immunization products will grow by 72.3%, and it is expected to maintain steady growth in the next 4 years. Among them, the sales of black seed oil on Amazon increased by 72% (July 2019 to June 2020 VS July 2020 to June 2021). Mushroom products increased by 60.2% year on year. Emotion, stress, and mental health products will grow by 29.4% in 2020. The growth rate in 2021 will reach more than 10%. In 2020, sleep support products will grow by 10%. In 2020, Ayurvedic herbs increased by 27.9% year on year. This is mainly related to Ashwagandha, Turmeric, and Bacopa.
1 Popular ingredients in the health market
1.1 Immunity category
In the post-epidemic era, consumers are more concerned about overall immune health. Not only the teenagers and the elderly, but consumers of all ages are beginning to pay attention to the maintenance of their immunity. In the entire immune health category, mushroom products will increase by 60% year-on-year in 2020. The growth of raw materials such as Chaga, Grifola frondosa, Ganoderma lucidum, and Xilaizhi is more obvious. In addition, the market awareness and product sales of the traditional herbal black seed oil are also increasing.
Beta-glucan is a relatively hot raw material for the past two years, and it exists on the cell walls of plants, bacteria, and fungi. It can be extracted from raw materials such as yeast, oats, barley, barley, mushrooms, etc. β-glucans from different structural sources have different application directions. In contrast, β-glucan derived from microalgae began to become raw material for immune product formulations. In addition, elderberry and echinacea may not be the most shining raw materials, but they are the raw materials with sufficient scientific data. Data show that in 2020, elderberry will grow by 112% year-on-year, and echinacea will grow by 25% year-on-year.
1.2 Stress and emotional support
In 2020, synergistic formula products increased by 322% year on year. The main players in this field include Ashwagandha, Bacopa monnieri, Conifer, Rhodiola, and Saffron. The awareness of the Indian Ayurvedic herbal medicine market represented by Ashwagandha is increasing, and there is a trend to catch up with turmeric. At present, many products in the global market contain this raw material. In 2020, Ashwagandha will increase by 50% year on year.
1.3 Cognitive health support fields
With the increasing pressure of daily life, more and more consumers are beginning to pay attention to brain health products. The product formulation of the cognitive health market has shifted from traditional capsules and tablets to more snack-oriented products, including food, beverages, candies, snacks, etc. The main raw materials include American ginseng, Bacopa monnieri, blueberries, green oats, Hericium Erinaceus, sage, saffron, and turmeric.
1.4 Sleep management
Sleep has formed a specific industrial chain structure, from daily necessities to electronic equipment to related health foods. , The sleep economy is rising in a new trend. More and more consumers are looking for dietary supplements to help them improve their sleep disorders. At the same time, consumers are choosing more natural and healthy products. At present, the main raw materials for sleep management are chamomile, hops, passionflower, saffron, and valerian.
1.5 Other categories
Ayurvedic herbs mainly include Ashwagandha, Bacopa monnieri, Holy basil, Asparagus longi, and turmeric. Mushroom raw materials mainly include Chaga, Cordyceps, Hericium Erinaceus, Ganoderma lucidum, Yunzhi.
2 Plants and herbs are making a comeback
2.1 The properties of the plant herb itself
Plants are rich in nutrients and phytochemicals. Due to the limitations of technology and technology, the current knowledge of phytonutrients is still very limited. At present, two-thirds of small molecule drugs are originally derived from natural compounds found in plants, bacteria, and fungi, but 99% of them have not yet been discovered. Phytonutrients can be said to be “hidden” in the kingdom of edible and medicinal plants. Natural compounds.
2.2 Confirmed by clinical scientific data
Since Shennong tasted Baicao, our ancestors have begun to use plant herbs to maintain health. After thousands of years of inheritance and continuation, the value of traditional Chinese herbal medicines is constantly being explored. With the continuous improvement of modern science and technology and extraction technology, more scientific data is constantly supporting the entry of traditional Chinese herbal medicine into a new stage. More than 4,000 scientific papers on phytochemicals are published every year.
2.3 Continuous innovation of technology
The extract contains a large amount of biologically active substances. How to extract the active ingredients quickly and effectively and to further separate and purify the extracts has become a “bottleneck” in the research of the natural extract industry. Especially in recent years, the rapid improvement of people’s environmental awareness and the promotion of global sustainable development concepts have made more unique and innovative extraction technologies a general trend.
2.4 Consumer demand level
Look for more natural substances. Consumers’ awareness of the requirements of healthy diets is increasing, and the demand for natural treatments is increasing. All these have promoted the rapid development of the natural health products industry and gradually replaced synthetic products. In addition, consumers are very cautious when choosing food, and they are more inclined to choose organic and natural foods.
