Beverages are no longer just about refreshment and hydration - they’re about sleep, focus, gut health and beauty, delivered in cans and sold via algorithms. This report unpacks the global rise of functional drinks, from TikTok-fuelled demand to regulatory grey zones, and explores what brands must know to innovate safely, price strategically and lead credibly in a fragmented, fast-moving market.
Key findings
Functional drinks become today’s “pharma in a can” for many consumers
Energy drinks, sleep waters and gut health colas now borrow the language of consumer health yet bypass pre-market review, normalising a form of daily self-medication through colourful cans. Consumers perceive quick fixes while regulators play catch-up, raising stakes for transparency, dosage verification and credible science before claims collapse into backlash.
Flavour and aesthetic often trump the promised functional benefits for beverage shoppers
Many successful breakout brands lead with nostalgic flavours, viral colour palettes and playful storytelling, then back-fill a light prebiotic or nootropic claim to justify an indulgence. Function becomes permission rather than purpose, suggesting category growth is sometimes fuelled less by efficacy than by novelty, social media shareability and taste.
Wellness positioning is transforming soft drinks into luxury lifestyle items
Premium gut sodas, collagen waters and protein RTDs now command café-style on-premise prices, clustering in boutique grocers and fitness studios. This affluence bias risks deepening health divides, as better-for-you convenience becomes a lifestyle marker rather than a practical tool for mainstream dietary improvement.
Algorithmic discovery channels now dictate which functional trends take off globally
Influencer algorithms surface micro-trends at lightning speed, turning water-enhancer hacks, matcha booms and hemp seltzers into overnight staples. Brands that fail to monitor digital sentiment and prototype quickly risk irrelevance, despite evidence that quality erodes as entertainment value, not science, determines reach and credibility.
Retail and regulation struggle to guide consumers amid swirling functional innovation
Retailers and regulators must decode overlapping benefit claims, psychoactive doses and personalised formats. Those who curate by need state, provide evidence and show restraint with dosing (particularly with ingredients such as caffeine and THC) will earn consumer trust, while passive, disorganised “functional” shelves and labels invite confusion, lawsuits and policy intervention.
The Future of Functional: Wellness in a Can global briefing offers an insight into to the size and shape of the Soft Drinks market, highlights buzz topics, emerging geographies, categories and trends as well as pressing industry issues and white spaces. It identifies the leading companies and brands, offers strategic analysis of key factors influencing the market - be they new product developments, packaging innovations, economic/lifestyle influences, distribution or pricing issues. Forecasts illustrate how the market is set to change and criteria for success. The analysis can focus on value and volume for both off trade and on trade.
Product coverage: Asian Speciality Drinks, Bottled Water, Carbonates, Concentrates, Energy Drinks, Juice, RTD Coffee, RTD Tea, Sports Drinks.
Data coverage: Market sizes (historic and forecasts), company shares, brand shares and distribution data.
Why buy this report?
- Get a detailed picture of the Soft Drinks market;
- Pinpoint growth sectors and identify factors driving change;
- Understand the competitive environment, the market’s major players and leading brands;
- Use five-year forecasts to assess how the market is predicted to develop.
