The eye health market is developing rapidly, and astaxanthin is expected to become a key raw material to break the homogeneity of the market.
As a subdivided potential track, the eye health market is showing a trend of rapid growth.
According to market data released by Grand View Research, the global eye health food market size in 2019 was US$1.5 billion, and the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) is expected to maintain a growth rate of 6.1% from 2020 to 2027.
The eye health market is growing rapidly. One of the main reasons is the extension of the consumer group. The consumer group of traditional eye health products is 55 years old or above. The key is prevention. Based on changes in health awareness, consumers of eye health products are leaning towards younger and more active people.
In addition, the new generation of young consumers are more inclined to choose natural health solutions to prevent eye health problems than the older generation, and are more willing to accept the concept of oral eye health products than them, which are driving the eye health ingredients and end market growth of.
In the eye health market, raw materials need to break the “homogeneity”
According to the 2022 National Eye Health White Paper jointly released by JD Health and Nature‵s Way, about half of China‵s children and adolescents have vision problems to varying degrees, far surpassing the United States, Australia and other countries. At the same time, adult eye problems cannot be ignored. The number of people with macular degeneration exceeds 30 million, and the number is increasing by 300,000 per year, and it is showing a younger trend. For a wider range of office workers, study parties, drama watching parties, game parties, etc., problems such as eye fatigue, dry eyes, and eye irritation have gradually become apparent.
At present, in the entire eye health track, lutein, zeaxanthin, astaxanthin, bilberry extract, vitamins (C, E), minerals (zinc, copper), fish oil, etc. are common raw materials, Among them, the application frequency of lutein, zeaxanthin and bilberry extract is relatively high. The main reason is the quantity and quality of scientific research, as well as good use tradition and consumer acceptance.
Taking lutein as an example, soft candy is currently a relatively fast-growing product category. Magic Mirror data shows that since the beginning of 2021, lutein gummies have become popular, and sales have shown exponential growth. The sales of Taobao Tmall e-commerce platform in the second quarter of 2022 will reach 129 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 547.8%. Although the growth of lutein gummies is very large, there are corresponding pain points, such as the effect of use is not obvious, and it is easy to eat too much.
Astaxanthin is a powerful antioxidant compound compared to other eye health ingredients. Existing data show that it can act on oxygen free radicals of singlet oxygen molecules and convert them into heat energy, and can also produce synergistic effects with other carotenoids (such as lutein and zeaxanthin), which are more effective than other carotenoids. Primitives provide stronger light absorption, spanning a wider range of wavelengths.
Whether it is the particularity of the structure or the health benefits, natural astaxanthin is becoming a “potential” raw material in the eye health market.
Focus on scientific research and development to build core competitiveness of products
Scientific data is the internal driving force to promote the sustainable development of raw materials, and consumers are increasingly recognizing raw materials and products with scientific endorsements.
At present, there are more than 3,000 scientific documents on astaxanthin on PubMed. Dr. Li Yanmei, the global chief scientific officer of BGG, said that the company’s current clinical research on natural astaxanthin mainly focuses on three aspects, including heart protection and emotion, memory, For eye health, relevant scientific literature has been published, and R and D investment in clinical research on astaxanthin is continuously increasing.
From the perspective of market demand, astaxanthin eye protection products are breaking the homogenization of eye market competition. Different from conventional eye protection materials, the application direction of astaxanthin is more subdivided, mainly eye microcirculation, which is a relatively unique market selling point. At the same time, it will form a synergistic effect with raw materials such as lutein and zeaxanthin.
Astaxanthin players need to build their own competitive “barriers”
Judging from past market perceptions, astaxanthin, as a functional raw material, has stages. Sometimes it may be at a certain stage, in a certain market, the demand will be relatively large, but sometimes it will drop, and it will be used by others. Antioxidant raw material substitution. For raw material suppliers, if a raw material is not a basic product, there will be a life cycle, which puts forward higher requirements for the enterprise.
Enterprises can build competition barriers in the astaxanthin industry through the following aspects.
1. Consolidate basic scientific research, continue to invest in clinical research on astaxanthin, provide more scientific data support for the product, solve technical problems in its application, and continue to innovate in technology.
2. Improve large-scale production capacity and control costs to meet customer needs and cost structures, but this does not mean a low-price strategy. On the premise of ensuring the cost, the quality of raw materials must also be achieved.
3. Ability to adapt to the market. For the Chinese market, the entire supply chain is flat. The life cycle of products is getting shorter and shorter, the speed of iteration is getting faster and faster, and downstream companies are updating products faster. Raw material suppliers need to improve their ability to adapt to the market, provide customers with solutions that are closer to market demand, and provide one-stop finished product solutions.
The global market demand continues to increase, and the aquatic feed track is worthy of attention
From the perspective of the global market, the downstream applications of astaxanthin are mainly in the three tracks of dietary supplements, skin care products, and aquatic feed. Sexual food direction.
In terms of downstream applications, aquatic feed may be a potential direction.
Aquafeed is a track worthy of attention. No matter from the global or domestic perspective, the replacement of antibiotics in aquaculture is a major trend. The demand for astaxanthin in the aquaculture industry in Southeast Asia is relatively obvious, especially for crustaceans.
At present, there is a lot of demand for food (solid beverage, liquid beverage) and feed in the domestic market. Natural astaxanthin has a good effect on fish intestinal health, muscle color, anti-stress, improvement of survival rate, spawning rate, etc. Application prospects. At present, the company‵s downstream customers have a large demand for food and feed, especially the demand for aquatic feed in the Southeast Asian market.
Natural astaxanthin still has a long way to go
The application of astaxanthin in the market still faces some challenges. First of all, astaxanthin is often defined as an “antioxidant”. From this perspective, there are too many types of antioxidants, and it is difficult to form differentiated competition in the market. Secondly, the cost is limited. For a functional raw material, the cost of the daily dosage is still relatively high. Finally, in terms of market education, all actors in the industry chain need to work together to educate the raw materials and the market.
Generally speaking, the current domestic market for astaxanthin is not particularly large, and there is still a long way to go, cost, technology, and research and development are all indispensable.
