GLP-1 Medications Force Food Industry Rethink

Few innovations have disrupted consumer behavior as quickly as GLP-1 weight-loss medications. Originally developed to manage diabetes, these drugs—including semaglutide-based products—are rapidly reshaping eating habits, grocery baskets, and foodservice decisions.

In the IFT FIRST sponsored Hot Topics Studio session “Navigating the GLP-1 Effect,” Todd Austin, senior director of solutions consultants at Aptean, and Tyler Bray, senior account executive at Aptean, outlined how reduced calorie intake, altered purchasing patterns, and new consumer priorities are forcing companies to rethink everything from formulation to packaging.

A Capital C Change

“We are really at a capital C change moment here,” Austin said. “The scope and impact is really just at a scale that we haven’t seen before.”

He cited a 2024 KPMG study estimating that caloric intake from GLP-1 users dropped 21% and monthly grocery spend fell 31%. “These are staggering numbers that we’re seeing,” he said.

Bray underscored the urgency: “It sounds like this is already having an impact on every single food and beverage company out there and will only continue to have more of an impact as adoption of this medication continues to grow.”

Everyone’s Job

Austin stressed that the GLP-1 effect touches every part of the business. “This is an absolute moment where everyone in the organization should be focused on this change,” he said. “There really needs to be a conversation across all of the different departments … packaging, branding, messaging, obviously formulation.”

Bray added that customer conversations confirm the shift: “Everywhere you look, all the customers that we’re talking to, they’re telling us how it’s really impacting the decisions they’re going to make and how they’re going to go to market.”

Signals From Big Brands

Austin pointed to large manufacturers already moving in response. Nestlé has launched its first new brand in nearly 30 years, designed for consumers on GLP-1 diets, while General Mills and Danone are marketing high-protein and high-fiber products to this audience. “If ones like that are already pivoting, then it tells us that in our mid-market space, we really need to be doing the same,” he said.

Preparing for the Future

The session closed with a clear warning. “We talked about doing nothing is probably not an option,” Austin said. “Reformulation isn’t optional—it’s going to be required. You need to look at your portfolio through the lens of a world where people eat less.”ft