FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Nancy White
The Natural Marketing Institute
215.513.7300 ext. 225
Nancy.White@NMIsolutions.com

NMI Reports 2005 Health & Wellness Industry Sales at $79 Billion

Functional and fortified foods/beverages is industry’s top product segment

Harleysville, Pa. – The Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) announced today that retail sales within the U.S. consumer packaged goods health and wellness industry reached $79 billion in 2005. That constitutes a total growth of 15% over 2004. These findings are part of NMI’s annual Health & Wellness Trends Database™ (HWTD) research study of 2,800+ U.S. consumer households.

According to NMI President Maryellen Molyneaux, “The 2005 sales figures represent significant acceleration compared to the 8% dollar growth shown in 2004. Functional/fortified beverages continue to be the industry’s largest category with 2005 retail sales of $29 billion, representing 37% of the total market and an impressive growth of 26%.”

Natural/organic personal care also showed a notable growth rate of 22%, growing to $5 billion. This is likely due to the continued migration of health and wellness into skincare, haircare, and bodycare products, among others. Organic foods/beverages showed a 17% increase to almost $13 billion. This growth was driven by a range of branded and private label products from both mainstream consumer packaged good companies and natural/organic companies.

Based on consumer spending by product segment, consumer penetration/usage trends, and projected data, industry retail dollars by segments for 2005 are as follows:

Functional/Fortified Foods & Beverages: $29.4 billion (26% growth)
Vitamins, Minerals, Herbal & Dietary Supplements: $19.6 billion (3% growth)
Organic Foods/Beverages: $12.8 billion (17% growth)
Natural Foods/Beverages: $12.4 billion (11% growth)
Natural/Organic Personal Care: $4.9 billion (22% growth)

Steve French, NMI Managing Partner, states that “All of these categories, except supplements, outpace the growth of their conventional counterparts and are the driving force behind many consumer packaged goods companies. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Service Sector Statistics Division, the annual growth rate among conventional grocery stores is 4.6%. Comparatively, the health and wellness industry’s growth is quite remarkable, and based on history it appears that these trends have staying power.”

This data will be published in March 2006 in NMI’s 2006 Health and Wellness Trends Report™ (HWTR). This comprehensive report contains more than 200 pages of data and analyzes the consumer attitudes, behaviors, product usage, lifestyles and demographics surrounding the health and wellness arena. Specific category focus includes: natural, organic, functional, fortified foods and beverages; corporate, social and environmental factors; weight loss products; natural/organic personal care; sports nutrition; nutritional supplements; health-related ingredients and health claims; sweeteners, as well as expanded analysis of NMI’s top trends of 2006.

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NMI is a strategic consulting, market research, and business development company specializing in the health, wellness, and sustainable marketplace. For more information on NMI’s other proprietary research reports and services, visit NMI’s web site at www.NMIsolutions.com.

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