Following the ever-changing preferences of American consumers remains a formidable, fascinating task. Delivering good taste while also creating a favorable eating experience remains a must, and the uptick in GLP-1 prescriptions has created some notable challenges for producers to deal with as they seek to create winning products. To find out more, we connected with Emma Cahill, Tate & Lyle’s marketing director for sweeteners and fibers.

Jenni Spinner: Could you please talk a little bit about how the surge in GLP-1 usage has impacted food consumption and purchases in general?

Emma Cahill: Kantar’s shopping basket data reveals a clear category split in terms of purchase behaviors in light of GLP-1 usage. Categories that deliver added nutrition, such as protein shakes, yogurts, and hydration drinks, are thriving. Meanwhile, indulgent categories like cookies, chips, and ice cream are prompting reformulation to stay relevant, while crackers remain largely stable.

In our own proprietary research, we found consumers prioritize different things depending on the category. Growing segments align closely with what GLP‑1 users actively look for: added fiber, protein, and claims that support digestive or bone health. Categories traditionally viewed as indulgent are losing relevance, with our sensory studies revealing that current GLP‑1 users are moving away from these richer taste profiles. Alongside these shifting sensory preferences, they’re increasingly choosing products with fewer calories, less sugar and fat, and clearer cues around weight management. We also see a growing desire for clean‑label ingredients, reflecting their focus on simplicity, transparency, and overall well-being.

We’re already seeing this dynamic reflected in customer conversations. Many are exploring how to tailor products to the nutritional needs and evolving taste preferences of people at different stages of their GLP‑1 journey. From high‑fiber biscuits to understanding how crunchiness preferences vary between user groups, customers are proactively looking for ways to keep beloved comfort foods delicious while making them healthier. Their goal is clear: retain consumers within their category, even as those consumers make more nutrition‑forward choices and adopt new habits.

JS: Then, how has the rise of such drugs impacted snacks and bakery products specifically? Feel free to talk about the amount and types of products they’re buying, ingredients and nutrients they’re seeking out (and which they’re avoiding), etc.

EC: Nutrient density is becoming a non‑negotiable in the snacks category. As GLP‑1 users shift toward foods that help them maintain muscle, protect bone health, and manage digestive discomfort, they’re moving away from traditional “empty‑calorie” snacking and toward products that deliver meaningful nutrition per bite. This is reinforced by our proprietary findings showing that over 80% of current GLP‑1 users actively consume healthier foods, though this drops to 64% once medication stops—highlighting the need for snacks that support longer‑term habits, not just early‑stage enthusiasm. 

At the same time, GLP‑1 usage reshapes snacking frequency itself. Snacking increases for both current and former GLP‑1 users, with nearly 57% of current users reporting they snack more than before therapy began. Even those who snack less still look for more satisfying, more nutritious options to meet their needs with smaller appetites. 

Label scrutiny also increases sharply. Nearly 70% of early‑stage GLP‑1 users “almost always” read labels, and this attentiveness extends across their weight‑loss journey. They consistently look for higher fiber, higher protein, and lower sugar, with snack categories showing clear patterns:

• Crackers: One in five GLP‑1 users increased cracker consumption because they feel it helps alleviate GLP‑1 side effects, signaling a strong need for nutrient‑dense, easy‑to-digest formats. 
• Cookies: Consumption decreases when healthier options are lacking—one in four GLP‑1 consumers reduced cookie consumption due to insufficient health benefits, revealing a major opportunity for nutrient‑forward reformulation. 
• Savory snacks and chips: These categories show the highest drop in basket spending (up to –11%), but taste-driven increases are still observed among a subset of users who want indulgence that doesn’t derail progress—proof that “food joy” remains essential even within weight‑management routines.

GLP‑1 snackers are looking for snacks that work harder for them, options that deliver more fiber and protein, with less sugar and fat, all while staying clean label and easy to digest. Texture and mouthfeel matter, too: GLP-1 users prefer crackers that feel lighter and crunchier, and cookies that are smoother and more enjoyable.

Brands that reformulate to offer fiber‑rich, protein‑boosted, lower‑sugar snacks without compromising taste, texture or mouthfeel stand to win with consumers who are hungry for solutions that meet their evolving needs and sustain their long‑term success.

JS: What sorts of changes are your customers in the bakery and snack space looking to make to existing products, and how is it changing discussions around the formulation of new products?

EC: Fiber is a huge priority, both for metabolic support, getting good nutrition, and managing some of the more uncomfortable digestive side effects these medications can bring. Prebiotic and probiotic claims are also getting good mentions, though fiber is predicted to grow faster than prebiotic and protein claims in the next five years.

Protein is also important during weight loss, as GLP-1 users talk about worrying about nutrition and avoiding muscle loss.

Bone health support also came up as important, though mostly in applications with a natural connection to calcium and dairy. This is because during rapid weight loss, especially if achieved without exercise, bone mineral density loss can occur. We saw this come up as the number 2 claim that is most important for current GLP-1 users when purchasing cookies, for example^. As a result, customers have had a renewed interest in one of our prebiotic fibers, Promitor Soluble Fiber, which may support additional calcium absorption, supporting bone health.

Courtesy of Tate & Lyle

JS: With those changes they’ve been discussing with you, what are the challenges in formulating for this brave new GLP-1 world—please tell us about delivering on the ingredient/nutrition demands of such consumers while still meeting expectations on taste, texture, mouthfeel, etc.

EC: Reformulation for health and wellness is a real opportunity - but it comes with challenges. The benefits need to feel credible for the category, the formulation has to taste good, and the consumer needs to be able to feel or measure the difference.

Brands are also competing with the supplement aisle on cost, which is why seamless integration into everyday eating habits is such a meaningful advantage.

When benefits are not connected to categories consumers are seeking them from, they can create more questions than answers. Science-backed claims, with robust research, make a difference.

Habit integration is a wonderful fortification advantage. For many consumers, adding in their recommended daily level of fiber from whole foods would create a huge increase in calories and/or a complete change in eating habits, neither of which is sustainable. Supplementation and fortification are strong strategies for nutrition and complement whole foods. With supplements, there is a habit to build, and there can be pill fatigue. With health moving from pharmacy to pantry, there is such an opportunity for nutritionally positive nudges through reformulation, ideally with minimal calorie and cost change to keep healthy options accessible.

Taste can be a challenge. Fiber in general may need a reintroduction to many consumers if they grew up with brown, chewy, and tasteless high-fiber products of the past. Some recent product launch reports from Mintel cite the ‘cool’ factor, and are ‘not your grandparents’ fiber’, highlighting the need to shift perceptions that protein is for bodybuilders and fiber is for seniors. I often find myself saying that fiber needs a facelift for all of these reasons, and now is the moment for that reputational refresh, and taste and texture will determine success.

Felt benefits matter. Tolerance is so important in fiber selection, especially if formulating for consumers whose goals include high fiber intake. The daily recommendation in the US is 25-38g per day, with more than 90% of Americans not getting enough fiber. Some fibers are difficult to tolerate at doses of only about 10 g, which is less than the size of the ‘fiber gap’. Most Americans are getting 12-14 g of fiber per day. Given that consumers may aim for health and wellness improvements across multiple day parts, I always consider the ‘what if’ my consumer had many of these products in a day when choosing the fiber to recommend. It all depends on how and where in the gut the fiber is fermented, and the good news is that there are fibers that give you a lot of margin to avoid your consumers having digestive discomfort if they simply love your product line.

Our Promitor Soluble Fiber is well tolerated, up to 65 g per day and 40 g per serving. Sta-Lite Polydextrose goes all the way up to 90 g per day. This high tolerance gives brands and consumers real peace of mind, making it easier to reach daily fiber goals without worry.

JS: Specifically, in an earlier exchange, you mentioned fiber as both an ingredient of increased appeal/interest, and an area that presents some concerns—please talk about that.

EC: Our sensory studies and surveys with GLP-1 user groups highlight differences in preference when it comes to texture and taste between people who are on and off the medication. Our technical experts have amazing abilities to build back taste and texture into the sugar and calorie-reduced snacks that all consumers are seeking as part of their overall health and wellness. I have seen both fibers and protein leveraged for sugar and fat replacement.

JS: Can you talk about some of the solutions (products and expertise) you offer customers looking to increase fiber content specifically, and then any products you’d like to share that are of increasing interest to customers looking to launch products more appealing to GLP1ers?

EC: We have ingredient solutions for every formulation challenge, from fortifying with fiber and protein to improve macros and promote satiety, replacing sugar to avoid glycemic spikes and reduce calories, or simply enhancing mouthfeel to increase the feeling of indulgence.

Of our fibers, our Promitor Soluble Fiber has the most benefits to offer current GLP-1 users, former GLP-1 users, and GLP-1 non-users on a weight management journey. It can support bone health and calcium absorption, while supporting gut microbiome health, which may offset some of the medication side effects. Its high tolerance means it can help consumers hit their daily fiber goals without concern. It also supports post-prandial (a lower post-meal) blood glucose response, has prebiotic effects, and can support weight management through calorie reduction (versus carbohydrates and sugars). 

Our Sta-Lite Polydextrose offers benefits of particular interest to former GLP-1 users, with studies showing reduced energy intake at the next meal and increased levels of GLP-1 production versus an isocaloric meal—meaning it helps you feel fuller for longer and helps you to eat fewer calories. 

Our sweetener portfolio, including sucralose, allulose, stevia, and monk fruit, is also showing strengthened perceptions by GLP-1 adopters. All four had higher awareness and positive perception among current and former GLP-1 users versus the control. This is likely thanks to the role they have in helping to manage blood glucose response and contribution to weight management. 

We also saw strengthened awareness of and purchase interest in pectin among GLP-1 user groups compared to the non-user control Pectin is a naturally occurring soluble fiber found in fruits and has been used for decades for its gelling and stabilization properties in foods and beverages such as fruit drinks, yogurts, and jams. Pectin is a great enabler for building back mouthfeel and pleasure cues in sugar-reduced applications and as a result connects to permissible indulgence. 

These insights reinforce just how strongly GLP‑1 use is shaping consumer interest in ingredients—especially when we see such distinct shifts in awareness and curiosity around health‑forward ingredients like pectin, sweeteners, and fibers.

JS: Any final thoughts?

EC: Our recommendation is to look at the full behavioral arc across the GLP-1 user journey. Consumers at different stages have distinct nutritional requirements, changing sensory preferences, and varying levels of habit‑building support—and product offerings should reflect that reality. By segmenting solutions around these specific needs, we make it easier for people to stay consistent and informed in their choices.

This approach requires intentional messaging, formulation, and nutrition support, and can really make a difference in an individual's success or rebound with their weight loss journey with GLP-1 medications and the foods and beverages we design to support them. 

Related: Tate & Lyle, Manus launch sweetener brand