The annual SupplySide Global show, a premier gathering for the health and nutrition sector, underscored the critical role of education in shaping industry discourse and innovation. This year’s event, held in Las Vegas, featured an extensive educational program that ran from Monday afternoon through Tuesday evening, culminating in the opening of the Expo Hall on Wednesday, October 28th. The content team meticulously curated these sessions, drawing upon industry insights gathered through informal discussions and formal calls for expertise. The registration numbers for these sessions were closely monitored, offering a clear indication of prevailing market interests and providing valuable foresight into emerging trends and potential challenges, such as the need for larger venues when preregistration figures exceeded expectations.
Among the most highly anticipated educational offerings, excluding the Professional Development Workshops, were three longer-form sessions that garnered the highest preregistration numbers for SupplySide Global 2026. These topics, reflecting the industry’s current preoccupations and future outlook, were:
- GLP-1 Drugs & the Health and Nutrition Industry: Market Impact and Consumer Support Strategies
- Supplement Trends 2027: Consumer Insights, Market Predictions and Innovation Strategies
- Next-Gen Proteins and Collagen: Breakthroughs in Compact Nutrition and Functional Formulation
Registered attendees of the education program have the opportunity to revisit all these content sessions through the official show app for an additional six weeks, ensuring continued access to valuable industry knowledge.
Decoding the GLP-1 Phenomenon: A Transformative Force in Health and Nutrition
The most popular session at SupplySide Global 2026 delved into the seismic impact of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drugs on the health and nutrition landscape. This session not only addressed one of the most significant contemporary topics but also introduced an innovative format that is expected to be a recurring feature in future events. The discussion commenced with a comprehensive market analysis presented by Sherry Frey of NielsenIQ (NIQ), offering a granular view of GLP-1’s influence. This data was augmented by strategic perspectives from industry leaders, including David Despain of Nestlé Health Science and Allyn Kaufmann from Haleon, who provided insights from major consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies.
Frey’s NIQ data illuminated the profound shifts occurring within the food and beverage industry as a direct consequence of GLP-1 adoption. Historically, the industry grappled with consumer battles against emotional and guilt-driven eating habits. However, the advent of GLP-1s has redefined these challenges. Consumers are now seeking food and beverage options that offer superior nutritional value in smaller quantities, coupled with an enhanced sensory experience, particularly in terms of texture. The era of mere indulgence has given way to a demand for sophisticated functionality.
Allyn Kaufmann emphasized that the current GLP-1 phenomenon is not merely a fleeting trend but a catalyst for fundamental changes in food consumption patterns that will shape future generations. These changes encompass evolving consumer shopping habits, altered cooking practices, and a heightened focus on the quality of food over sheer quantity. David Despain echoed these sentiments, underscoring the critical need for products that deliver peak nutrient density per calorie. He further highlighted the importance of ensuring adequate protein and fiber intake at every meal, advising on the strategic distribution of fiber throughout the day to mitigate potential digestive discomfort. As an R&D scientist, Despain also stressed the imperative for continued and expanded research within the GLP-1 domain.
Kaufmann reinforced the call for scientific rigor, cautioning the industry against the indiscriminate incorporation of ingredients without adequate supporting research, particularly within the GLP-1 consumer demographic. "Don’t let the marketing get ahead of the science," he advised, adding, "We can’t just chase GLP-1 everything." This cautionary note aims to prevent a market saturated with unproven or inadequately researched products that could undermine consumer trust.
Frey offered a crucial distinction, noting that consumers not taking GLP-1 drugs often share similar health aspirations with those who do. However, she cautioned that products explicitly marketed to GLP-1 users might not resonate with the broader consumer base. Her strategic recommendation for developers was to emphasize broader appeal through prominent callouts for higher protein and fiber content, thereby ensuring wider market reach.
Following the initial market overview and expert discussion, attendees were invited to participate in a unique "Pick Your Path" breakout session format. This allowed participants to choose from three distinct 45-minute sessions tailored to specific consumer needs: those seeking GLP-1 alternatives, individuals transitioning off GLP-1 therapy, or current GLP-1 users. Each breakout session featured specialized expert speakers and provided targeted information. Subsequently, all attendees reconvened in the main session room, where the moderators from each breakout session shared their key learnings on the main stage, synthesizing the diverse insights for the entire audience.
For professionals operating within or considering entering the GLP-1 adjacent market, this comprehensive session provided valuable data on ongoing opportunities, areas ripe for improvement, and potential pitfalls to avoid. Echoing the broader principles of natural product development, Kaufmann urged the audience to adopt a consumer-centric approach, striving to understand the underlying problems this population seeks to address and leveraging scientific innovation to provide effective solutions. The session underscored that while GLP-1 drugs are a significant disruptor, the principles of science-backed, consumer-focused product development remain paramount.
Navigating the Evolving Supplement Landscape: Key Trends for 2027
The consistent popularity of educational sessions dedicated to the state of the dietary supplement market was once again evident, with this trends session securing the second-highest preregistration numbers at SupplySide Global 2026. Bill Giebler and Erika Craft from Nutrition Business Journal provided a data-rich overview of the market, highlighting several significant trends:
- The Rise of the "Health Optimizer": A substantial 48% of the general population now identifies as a "health optimizer," a segment characterized by early adoption of natural products. This indicates a significant shift from a niche consumer group to a burgeoning mainstream majority, signaling a fundamental change in consumer priorities.
- Demographic Divergence in Health Focus: Younger consumers are increasingly prioritizing hormonal health optimization, driving growth in categories such as performance enhancement and emerging trends like protein and creatine supplementation. In contrast, older consumers tend to focus on foundational health, gravitating towards established dietary supplements like multivitamins and omega-3 fatty acids.
- Metabolic Health: A Growing, Yet Understood, Category: Over one-third of surveyed consumers are actively engaging with the concept of metabolic health. However, engagement and understanding of this area decline with age, with the highest percentage of individuals unsure of the term’s meaning being over 60 years old. This presents an opportunity for increased consumer education and targeted product development.
- Rapid Ingredient Emergence: The dietary supplement market demonstrates a remarkable capacity for rapid ingredient innovation. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) precursors, virtually unheard of a few years ago, experienced a 47% growth in 2025. Prebiotics (up 43%), collagen (30%), and digestive enzymes (28%) also emerged as top-performing categories.
- Format Innovation Continues: Non-pill formats, such as gummies, have been the primary engine of industry growth since 2019. Nevertheless, traditional pills, tablets, and capsules continue to command steady sales, indicating their sustained appeal among a significant consumer segment.
- E-commerce Dominance on the Horizon: Projections for 2026 indicate that e-commerce is poised to become the largest sales channel for dietary supplements, surpassing mass-market retail. This trend underscores the increasing importance of digital strategies and direct-to-consumer models.
The session also featured crucial legal and regulatory insights from Zachary Taylor of Epstein Becker Green and Luke Huber of the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN). Taylor pointed to staffing shortages, funding limitations, and bandwidth constraints as significant capacity challenges facing federal authorities tasked with overseeing the dietary supplement industry. Huber provided an update on various tariffs and trade concerns impacting the sector.
Rahul Roy presented data from SPINS, revealing that 58% of consumers now adopt a preventive health mindset, evidenced by their purchase of dietary supplements within the last year. This finding corroborated NBJ’s conclusion regarding the growing emphasis on health-consciousness. SPINS’ analysis further indicated that 45% of total supplement growth in the past year originated from the protein and performance nutrition segments. Roy highlighted emerging areas to watch, including peptide-based formats, advanced delivery systems such as liposomal encapsulation, and next-generation creatine formulations. Consumers are actively seeking more targeted benefits, enhanced palatability, and convenient product usage.
Aude Ray, representing Nestlé’s premium vitamin, mineral, and supplement (VMS) division, which includes brands like Solgar and Pure Encapsulation, identified longevity and metabolic health as key strategic focus areas for the company. She also shared details about Solgar’s implementation of an AI initiative at the retail level designed to support consumer education and product selection. Ray also addressed the persistent challenge of "pill fatigue," acknowledging that while pills and capsules often offer the most effective delivery of active ingredients, the industry must continue to innovate and provide nutrients in a diverse array of formats.
In the concluding panel discussion, data experts offered distinct perspectives. Roy lauded the industry’s progress in formulating women’s health products with appropriate dosages. Craft provided a foundational definition of metabolic health—the body’s process of energy conversion—and noted the category’s sustained growth, emphasizing its broad impact and multifaceted approach. Giebler advised close observation of ingredient trends, predicting that innovations gaining traction in dietary supplements will inevitably permeate the food sector, manifesting in bars, beverages, and other product formats.
The Protein Revolution: Innovation, Quality, and Consumer Demand
The session dedicated to next-generation proteins and collagen, ranking third in preregistration, addressed the "insatiable" consumer demand for protein, as articulated by Brad Meyers of the alt-protein company The Fynder Group. This session occurred against a backdrop where audience polling revealed significant concern over "rising whey protein costs," prompting a focus on novel protein sources and strategies for optimizing traditional protein resources.
A recurring theme throughout SupplySide Global 2026 was the mandate for products that excel in taste and texture, often referred to as "T-squared." However, in the protein category, speakers noted a greater degree of consumer leniency regarding sensory attributes, provided the product effectively meets desired protein intake targets. Sam Kressler of Stir Innovation nuanced this point, stating, "It can’t be sandy when it’s supposed to be smooth." While acknowledging that protein consumers might tolerate a less-than-ideal product experience, he cautioned that this compromise is temporary and lasts only until a superior-tasting alternative enters the market.
Meyers concurred, asserting that while marketing might secure the initial sale, taste is the critical factor for sustained brand loyalty and repeat purchases.
Protein quality emerged as another significant topic. Meyers observed that many consumers lack a thorough understanding of or actively seek out PDCAAS (protein digestibility-corrected amino acid score), a standard metric for protein quality. Nelson Bahri from the American Egg Board expressed optimism that consumer education regarding protein sources will improve, drawing parallels to past gains in understanding carbohydrates and oils, where shoppers learned to differentiate between "good" and "bad" sources. He noted that protein is unique among nutrients, having never been subjected to negative messaging, yet he believes education on basic protein quality markers is achievable.
The intersection of GLP-1s and protein was also explored. Kressler suggested that while most consumers may not yet grasp the need for slower-digesting proteins, they recognize the importance of fiber. Bahri voiced concerns about the industry’s heavy focus on GLP-1 users, positing that the combination of GLP-1 medications, which slow digestion, with foods that also slow digestion might not always be an optimal outcome. Kressler highlighted the irony that "everyone just wants protein—GLP-1 user or not," yet many individuals already consume more protein than their bodies require.
Echoing sentiments from the GLP-1 session, Meyers advised product developers to focus on promoting nutritional value rather than direct GLP-1 messaging, stating, "No one wants to be marketed to as ‘you’re on a diet.’" Bahri added that the food industry has historically been driven by value and serving size, with "big and cheap in America" being a prevailing ethos. He noted that GLP-1s have fundamentally altered this dynamic, leading Americans to desire nutrient-dense, two-bite foods with exceptional taste and texture. Despite these evolving challenges, he stressed the importance of proactive formulation and avoiding complacency, emphasizing the continuous need for innovation.
Kyle Failla from Perfect Day, a company scaling up precision fermentation manufacturing, offered encouraging remarks, stating, "At the end of the day, all proteins have a place in the formulator’s tool belt. That’s something we can be really proud of as an industry overall." This sentiment underscored the collective progress and broad utility of various protein sources within the industry’s expanding toolkit. The discussions throughout SupplySide Global 2026 collectively painted a picture of a dynamic and forward-looking health and nutrition sector, poised to address evolving consumer needs through science, innovation, and strategic market adaptation.
