SINGAPORE | Protein demand will keep rising after the proteinmaxxing boom has faded, with Asia leading the next wave of growth.
According to Euromonitor International’s findings in The Age of Proteinmaxxing and the Future of Protein Demand, high-protein food, drinks and supplements generated more than USD three trillion in retail sales in 2025, while global protein demand is projected to grow 11 percent between 2024 and 2029.
China recorded the highest retail sales of high-protein products globally at USD 425 billion, followed by the USA and India. Unlike the US, China’s main source of protein growth was fresh food, including fish, pulses and rice, and is forecast to see the highest absolute retail volume growth by 2029.
Matthew Barry, global insight manager for packaged food at Euromonitor International, said that the protein market has become more selective. The strongest growth and opportunities will come from consumers with enduring needs, including older adults, GLP-1 users, people engaged in resistance training, and households in developing markets.
Ready-to-drink protein formats shape "high-protein" market in Asia
While China showed strong demand for protein from fresh foods, in the Asia Pacific, developed markets saw rapid growth in ready-to-drink and food-based protein formats.
Japan has led demand for sports protein products over the last decade, with the market reaching USD 1.6 billion in 2025, followed by China and South Korea at USD 642 million and USD 338 million, respectively. Protein powders have remained the best-performing format for sports protein products across countries in the region.
In South Korea, sports protein RTDs are forecast to see a 12 percent CAGR from 2025 to 2030, ahead of three percent for powders. Singapore also showed a growing preference for RTDs, with an expected CAGR of 5.7 percent compared to 3.6 percent for powders.
Nathanael Lim, Asia Pacific insight manager for beverages at Euromonitor International, said the rapid adoption of sports protein RTDs across South Korea was driven by widespread convenience store accessibility, strong functional benefits and increasingly active lifestyles.
GLP-1 drugs, lifestyle shifts, and regulatory structures have coalesced into an environment in which consumers now strongly associate higher protein intake with better health.
Quality will matter over quantity
According to Euromonitor's Voice of the Consumer: Health and Nutrition survey 2026, 41 percent of global adults who want to improve their diet have been eating less ultra-processed food, while high-protein ready meals carried an average 66 percent price mark-up in 2024.
The pursuit of protein quality is naturally connected to the search for the “next protein”. Consumers trying to increase their protein intake might do so for several reasons.
Fibre has sat closest to protein’s current usage, as it provides many other health benefits, including supporting protein intake, immune function, and skin health. However, this should not lead us to assume it is simply a matter of sticking fibre where protein is now.
“Consumers will keep paying for protein when it feels natural, useful and worth the premium. Brands that rely on protein claims alone will find it harder to hold attention as scrutiny rises,” said Barry.
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