The future of sports drinks in Europe: What do companies need to know?

The decision makers that have now taken office in the European Parliament – along with Ursula von der Leyen’s re-appointment as President of the European Commission – will be expected to pick up key policy and regulatory initiatives on food, nutrition and sustainability.

So how will sports drinks be affected?

Labelling 

The European Commission has already thrown its weight behind promoting healthy diets: with the long-term objective being to tackle the ever-increasing obesity levels that cost millions.

“Perhaps the most important plan that we’ve seen in this context is the introduction of mandatory front-of-pack nutrition labelling and nutrient profiles to promote consumer information on food and reduce the consumption of products high in fat, sugar, or salt (HFSS),” explained Bucchini.

“A controversial proposal indeed – considering Member States’ different opinions on what constitutes a healthy diet – this regulatory initiative has been put on hold and it is now up to the new Commission to decide whether and how to proceed with this plan and reach a consensus with the European Parliament in case of a new legislation.”  

What that means for sports drinks is particularly complicated – because they are designed for a specific function and thus deliberately contain high levels of some ingredients for fast action.

“The introduction of FOPNL and nutrient profiles are highly relevant for the sports foods sector and uncertainty is growing among businesses on what is going to happen next,” said Bucchini.