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“Better For You” is a category used to described health and wellness products popularized by the North America and Western Europe weight management and weight loss fads like the “South Beach” and “Atkins” diets as well as concerted public authority campaigns in these countries in favour of healthy eating habits to stop the obesity pandemic.

The category includes food and beverage products where the amount of a substance considered to be less healthy (such as fat, sugar, salt, carbohydrates) has been actively reduced or removed during the production process

In 2005, global Better For You (BFY) sales in this category was estimated at US$108.9 billion, with health beverage and food supplements sales achieving respectively 11% and 8% annual growth.

Canadians, as educated consumers, have shown strong demand for Better For You products in an attempt to follow healthier lifestyles. According to AC Nielson research, the number of products listed as “better for you” in Canada doubled the new labelling standards from Health Canada came into effect in 2003, which allows for health claims to be displayed on product labels. This is currently a successful and predictably long-staying trend as companies develop new BFY options and nutritionally improved staple food products such as naturally healthier olive oil and whole grain bread.

BFY snack foods are strong performers in the Canadian market, with reduced-fat items outpacing sales of conventional products. Reduced-fat biscuits, sweet and savoury snacks, as well as extruded snacks, such as flavoured rice crisps and soy crisps, are strong performers at retail grocery stores across the country. In particular, the major sweet and savoury snack producer Frito-Lay Canada, boosted sales of BFY products when its reduced-fat “Baked” Lay’ s and Tostitos were introduced to the market. Reduced-fat products are also popular for staple food items such as milk, oils and fats, as well as in convenience products such as frozen and chilled ready-meals. For instance, despite a decrease in per capita consumption of milk, reduced-fat milk sales grew 4% in 2006, and reduced-fat yogurt represented over a third of all retail sales of yogurt in Canada.

Healthier oils and fats is a major trend affecting Canadian consumers as the population has become more educated about health problems associated with the high-fat content of traditional products. Over half of all retail sales of spreadable oils and fats are from reduced-fat, reduced-salt, or reduced combination BFY products, as well as naturally healthy olive oil spreads. This success can mainly be attributed to Unilever Canada‘ s aggressive marketing of its ‘Becel’ brand as a healthy alternative to butter. Sales of naturally healthy olive oil are strong, with higher priced imported “extra virgin” varieties boosting sales values.

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