IN Brief:
- IFF outlines ten eating occasions including protein-focused breakfasts, planned indulgence and post-dose needs.
- The company also identifies five hydration need states for beverage concept development.
- The research combines proprietary consumer work with a review of more than 25,000 social posts.
IFF has published new research identifying ten eating occasions among consumers using GLP-1 medicines, with differing product preferences reported across the day, beyond the effects of reduced food intake. Its report, GLP-1 Consumer Moments of Opportunity, outlines occasions involving protein, hydration, smaller portable foods, deliberate indulgence and social eating. The findings provide a commercial formulation framework, not clinical guidance or evidence that a particular ingredient can improve treatment outcomes.
The research was developed with InsightsNow and draws on proprietary consumer work involving GLP-1 users, analysis of snacking behaviours, secondary industry information and a review of more than 25,000 social media posts relating to GLP-1 use and snacks. IFF also used InsightsNow’s Claira behavioural intelligence platform to explore relationships between context, needs and purchasing situations. The announcement does not publish a survey sample size, weighting information or the full research protocol, limiting independent assessment of representativeness; analysis of social posts cannot establish how all GLP-1 users behave.
The ten occasions include a protein-first start to the day, a late-morning or early-afternoon bridge between meals, post-dose recovery, portable fuel for busy schedules and end-of-day comfort. They also cover planned indulgence, a nutritional intake check, food after exercise, social eating and choices that consumers feel align with their broader nutrition objectives. IFF uses these as consumer-research and product-development categories, rather than medical classifications. Individual appetite, tolerance and nutritional needs vary widely.
A smaller eating occasion changes how a food product may need to perform. A compact portion can place greater emphasis on texture, flavour intensity and the amount of protein, fibre or other nutrients supplied per serving. Yet increasing nutrient density is not a purely arithmetic exercise. Proteins affect viscosity, solubility and mouthfeel, while added fibres may change water binding, sweetness perception and digestive tolerance. A manufacturer designing a small snack or drink must balance nutritional positioning with what can be produced consistently and enjoyed in the intended situation.
IFF identifies a post-dose period when some surveyed consumers report discomfort or increased sensory sensitivity and may prefer milder flavours or easier-to-consume formats. Such observations can guide taste panels and product concepts, but they are not a recommendation about managing medicine side effects. Claims that a food product treats a symptom or affects the action of a medicine would require substantially different evidence and regulatory consideration from a sensory preference survey. A reported preference in consumer research is materially different from a demonstrated clinical effect.
Planned indulgence and the social-table occasion challenge the assumption that products aimed at GLP-1 users will always be austere or strictly functional. Smaller desserts, familiar flavours and flexible serving formats could retain a place in product development, according to the research. That raises familiar manufacturing questions about portion control, single-serve packaging, deposition accuracy and shelf-life stability. A product designed for lower intake must still meet food safety specifications and its sensory promises, and portion changes can alter packaging cost per unit of food.
IFF extends the framework to beverages through five Hydration Plus need states: Replenish, Maintain, Revitalize, Perform and Connect. These categories could lead to different product briefs around taste, mouthfeel, convenience and nutritional composition. However, the research does not establish a universal hydration requirement or justify medical claims for drinks. Sweetener choices, mineral composition and flavour release need to be tested alongside stability, processing and consumer acceptance rather than selected solely to match the name of an occasion.
Yuvraj Arora, President of IFF Taste, said food developers needed to match nutrition, enjoyment and functionality to the needs consumers experience at different points in the day. IFF’s Mark Haupt, Chief Medical Officer and Vice President of Health Sciences R&D, also emphasised the continuing importance of sensory enjoyment. This October report follows IFF’s 2025 GLP-1 opportunity study and gives manufacturers a more detailed set of occasions against which to test individual food and drink concepts.
Manufacturers will also have to decide which parts of the research can be tested with existing products and which require new processing or packaging. A smaller serving size may be implemented through portioning equipment changes, whereas a high-protein beverage might require a different ingredient system and heat-stability validation. Those options have distinct costs and technical risks; research into consumer occasions does not remove the need to establish production feasibility and a sustainable margin.
Sales outcomes for products developed using the proposed consumer occasions remain untested in the material IFF has published. Consumer occasions can help researchers design relevant trials and segment product briefs, but they do not replace validated formulations, accurate nutrient declarations, shelf-life assessment or independent evidence supporting health claims. Manufacturers will also need to distinguish between users of the medicines and other consumers who may favour similar portions or nutritional formats. Its ten occasions and five hydration states can inform trial briefs, but published results do not establish which formulations or pack sizes will achieve repeat purchases.
