Trend tracker: Femcare rise in Japan, NMN boom in Hong Kong and more

Japan’s functional food trends: Surge in products and new opportunities focused on women​​

There is a growing demand for 'femcare' products in Japan including those designed for vaginal health and supporting premenstrual dysphoric mood, according to exclusive data obtained on Japan’s functional foods sector.

According to data from Japan-based nutraceutical consultancy firm Smooth Link Inc, the number of Foods with Function Claims (FFCs) claiming to support femcare had increased from six in FY2015 to 58 in FY2023.

An example is Asahi Group Foods’ Lactobacillus gasseri​ CP2305, which is said to support “the ability to reduce temporary premenstrual dysphoric mood, mental fatigue, and drowsiness in healthy women with a normal menstrual cycle”.​

Hong Kong nutra trends: NMN booming and strategies to meet local and Chinese visitors’ needs​​

Nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) has become one of the hottest health supplement categories in Hong Kong, on the back of strong demand for anti-ageing products, say Catalo, NUNMN, and Homart in this edition of our in-depth VitamINSIGHTS analysis.

A reason for NMN’s popularity in Hong Kong could be due to consumers’ curiosity in new health supplements, said Nicole Leung, senior business director at Catalo.

The core consumers are women in their 40s to 50s who are experiencing the effects of ageing, such as fatigue, lower vitality, while more men are also turning to NMN for improved vitality and energy.

South Korea’s red ginseng sector sees export boost amid slowing domestic demand​​

South Korea’s domestic demand for red ginseng has slowed down in the past year, but the sector is seeing opportunities overseas, especially in neighbouring East Asian countries and Vietnam.

The country’s production output of red ginseng dropped 21.2 per cent to KRW$464.4 billion (US$339.7m) last year due to slowing domestic demand for immune products post-COVID, said the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS).

However, there is growing interest from overseas, especially in China, Japan, and Vietnam, with total export value of the herb going up 32 per cent last year to US$56.32 million.

Adults in 20s, 30s most interested in personalised nutrition – Suntory-backed start-up survey​​

Japanese adults in their 20s and 30s are most interested in personalised nutrition as compared to the other age groups, a survey conducted by Suntory-backed start-up Rem3dy Health has found.

This is according to an online survey conducted by Rem3dy Health – a UK personalised nutrition start-up backed by Suntory.​

Among those in their 20s, more than half of those surveyed (53 per cent) said they were either “interested” or “somewhat interested” in personalised nutrition. In contrast, only 10 per cent of those in their 40s had expressed interest.

Sleep, mental health underlined as top-of-mind concerns among APAC consumers amid cost-of-living crisis​

Sleep and mental health have been identified as the top consumer concerns in Asia-Pacific (APAC) amid the cost-of-living crisis, which consequently spell opportunities for innovation and category growth, says a consumer intelligence firm.

Craig Houliston, regional executive director at NielsenIQ pointed out the above while speaking at Growth Asia Summit 2024.

Sleep, for instance, was pinpointed as a key area to be addressed based on a report by the National University of Singapore.