Few events in the global health and nutrition calendar carry the gravitas of Vitafoods Europe.
Since 1997, the event has long been a showcase of both today’s nutraceutical landscape, and a window into what the future may hold. This year’s event in Barcelona was no different, welcoming tens of thousands of attendees and 1,600-plus exhibitors, representing all corners of the health supply chain.
The Clasado team was in attendance across all three days, meeting brands, industry colleagues, listening to the conference sessions, and talking to partners from Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Here are the key trends and themes that stood out during this year’s event.
Gut health is certainly not just ‘a trend’
The positioning of the gut health category was telling at this year’s Vitafoods. Ingredients and products focused around supporting better gut health were no longer considered an emerging area of interest, but as the solid and established foundation from which other health categories are being built.
According to Innova Market Insights, 59% of consumers globally say they believe gut health is very important for the entire body, and gut health ranked number one for product claims growth globally between 2023 and 2025, at 16.5%, according to Euromonitor International data.
What this means practically is that formulators are no longer asking whether to include gut health benefits in a product. They are asking which categories to connect it to. From healthy ageing and sports nutrition to metabolic health and cognitive wellness, the gut-health conversation ran through all of them at Vitafoods.
GLP-1 was a major story
GLP-1 agonists dominated conversations in a way that few specific product categories ever do at an ingredients trade show. FMCG Gurus data puts current GLP-1 drug usage at 17% of global consumers, which is a significant proportion. More telling, in terms of the category’s future is that 38% of those users have considered stopping due to the severity of side effects.
The gastrointestinal side effects associated with GLP-1 medications are already generating demand for companion products and for health and nutrition brands, sending out a clear signal. . Brands building products for this audience are actively looking for ingredients with a clinical evidence base, not functional claims built on weak substantiation.
Healthy ageing in the spotlight
The longevity category has been dominated by older consumer messaging for years. Vitafoods 2026 reflected a change: healthy ageing is increasingly positioned around prevention across all life stages. The United Nations projects global life expectancy will reach 76.4 years by 2050, and the industry is responding by moving innovation earlier in the consumer journey. The focus on vitality, metabolic fitness, and maintaining quality of life, rather than managing decline, is reshaping what formulators need from ingredients.
Biotics featured prominently in longevity discussions. The gut-brain axis, immune resilience, and gut microbiome support all sit within that scope, indicating that prebiotics could be a valuable tool in developing next-generation healthy ageing products.
Sports nutrition and the gut
Gut health is gaining real traction in active nutrition, and the conversations at Vitafoods reflected that clearly. Over 50% of performance consumers now prioritise digestive and immune health alongside their primary fitness goals, according to FMCG Gurus; a significant shift from the protein-and-recovery focus that has dominated the category for years.
The clinical evidence supports this direction. Our recently published Nottingham Trent University study, conducted over six weeks with healthy male athletes undertaking high-intensity exercise in hot conditions, found that daily Bimuno® GOS supplementation produced a 38% reduction in peak change in I-FABP, a biomarker of gut barrier damage.
For formulators operating in this space, the focus of the market is consistent with what we heard across the show: clinical evidence in relevant populations, ingredients that address the gut-related challenges athletes face under training stress, and formats that work at lower effective doses.
The future of formulation
The categories most actively seeking gut health credentials at Vitafoods were healthy ageing,
weight management, and sports nutrition with women’s health and brain health also making a fair amount of buzz too. Across all of them, the clear priorities were clinical evidence over marketing claims, innovative and flexible formats (capsules, functional beverages, shots), and ingredients that can work at lower doses without losing efficacy.
For health and nutrition brands, and their formulators, the ingredient choice matters more than ever.
FAQs
What were the key trends at Vitafoods Europe 2026?
Gut health, GLP-1 and weight management, healthy ageing, and sports nutrition were the dominant topics. Across all of them, the demand for clinically substantiated ingredients was a clear thread.
Is gut health still a growing category in 2026?
Yes. Gut health claims recorded the highest product sales growth of any functional claim globally between 2023 and 2025, according to Euromonitor International, at 16.5%.
What is driving demand for gut health ingredients in sports nutrition?
Gastrointestinal symptoms may lead to missed training and competitive events. Formulators are increasingly looking for ingredients with specific clinical evidence in athletes.
How does the rise of GLP-1 drugs affect the prebiotic market?
GLP-1 medications are reported to cause or exacerbate digestive side effects such as nausea, diarrhoea and bloating. With 38% of users having considered stopping because of side-effect severity overall (FMCG Gurus), this is fuelling demand for digestive support ingredients with a credible evidence base.
Is prebiotic GOS relevant to healthy ageing products?
Yes. The gut microbiome plays a role in gastrointestinal and immune function, metabolic health, and the gut-brain axis, all of which are central to healthy ageing positioning. Bimuno GOS has clinical data across these areas.
What formats are gaining ground in gut health supplementation?
Functional beverages, capsules at lower doses, and multi-ingredient formats are all growing. Smaller-dose formats are particularly relevant as Bimuno GOS has demonstrated bifidogenic efficacy at just 380mg daily.
