Creatine, colostrum, faux-zempic, and prebiotics: These are among the snack aisle’s buzziest ingredients, and Gen Zers are shelling out for a taste. These molecular marvels offer a small window into a larger shift in how consumers choose what to eat and drink.
Over the past several years, the world’s largest food and beverage (F&B) consumer-packaged-goods (CPG) companies have lost an estimated $1 trillion in enterprise value, due in part to their struggle to keep up with these trends. That’s according to McKinsey’s latest State of Food and Beverage report by Duncan Miller, Frank Sänger, Jessica Moulton, Jordan Bar Am, Konstantin Habernoll, and René Schmutzler. The report, based on a survey of 15,000 consumers across ten markets, shows spending is moving away from traditional CPG incumbents in four distinct ways: toward premium disruptor brands, more affordable private-label options, food delivery options, and fresh food for cooking at home.
A return to growth will depend on winning back consumers who are rethinking their snack pantry. For many F&B companies, that starts with Gen Z, whose preferences sometimes differ from those of older generations. For instance, fewer Gen Z consumers are willing to sacrifice taste or convenience in the name of health (48 percent say they would, compared with 54 percent of consumers overall), even as many navigate dietary restrictions.
Consider the rise of premium disruptor brands: These products tend to offer clearer benefits, whether that’s functional ingredients, cleaner labels, or simply a stronger brand point of view. Just as important, they deliver something less tangible: cultural relevance. From prebiotic sodas to protein bars, everyday snacks are becoming signals of identity, tapping into a “status economy” where what Zoomers eat and drink becomes a flex.
That dynamic helps explain why some Gen Z consumers are trading up even as budgets tighten. Buying into these brands can feel like buying into a community, a lifestyle, or online virality. Gen Z is especially receptive to disruptor brands: 32 percent say they’re willing to try smaller brands, compared with 28 percent of consumers overall. They are also more likely to act on influencer recommendations, amplifying the value of creator-led product launches. Increasingly, that willingness is translating into growth. Disruptor brands may still represent a small share of the market, but they’re driving an outsize share of growth in some CPG categories, such as beverages, often by meeting needs that incumbents have been slower to address.
To better reach Zoomers, CPG players should double down on product innovation to deliver on taste, function, and convenience in novel and exciting ways. “Newstalgia”—nostalgic flavors with modern twists, bold colors, unexpected textures, and global mashups—along with “swangy” (sweet, spicy, tangy) profiles, have proved especially resonant.
The through line is less about novelty for its own sake and more about giving consumers something worth discovering—and sharing.
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