Gluten-free has gone mainstream
The global gluten-free market is projected to reach US$6.2 billion by 2018, with North America contributing about 59% of the share. Canada’s own gluten-free market is about $450 million per year.
The demand for gluten-free products has seen tremendous growth over the past five years, in the ballpark of about 26%! Marketing experts predict a slower growth over the next five years, to about 10%. That’s likely because trusted health professionals are explaining that gluten-free diets are not a solution for obesity, and consumer perceptions of its healthfulness are slowly beginning to wane.
There will always be a market for gluten-free products that help add variety to the diet of people with celiac disease, wheat allergies or non-celiac gluten sensitivity, which account for about 5% of the population. However, sales data indicate that about 22% of Canadians currently buy gluten-free products.