Carbonates in Taiwan

2021 DEVELOPMENTS

Carbonates sees ongoing declines, due to challenges from health and wellness trends and on-trade closures

Carbonates is seeing worse sales in 2021 as compared to 2020, with both retail and foodservice in negative-figure declines. However, even pre-pandemic, carbonates was seeing sluggish growth due to such drinks going against the rising health and wellness trends.

Rising competition from healthy options and a lack of on-the-go consumption opportunities place further downwards pressure on carbonates

The event of the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated health and wellness trends which were already on the rise in Taiwan. As such, this is placing additional pressure on the potential growth of carbonates, which was already a declining category in the country.

Tonic water shows the only positive growth, thanks to trend for home-mixed cocktails and the illusion it is a “healthier” carbonate

Tonic water/other bitters, albeit remaining a small sub-category, is seeing the only positive off-trade volume growth in 2021. This is attributed to tonic water/other bitters translating from on-trade to off-trade sales as many consumers took to mixing their own cocktails at home whilst bars and restaurants were closed.

PROSPECTS AND OPPORTUNITIES

Zero-sugar options with natural ingredients present new growth opportunities or an ailing category

Sales in carbonates are expected to rebound in 2022, in both on-trade and off-trade terms. However, this will be a direct reflection of the slumps seen in 2021 as opposed to heralding a new direction for the category.

Competition from other soft drinks categories will become even stronger over the forecast period

Competition from other drinks categories will become ever stronger over the forecast period, as health awareness continues to be on the rise. In more developed countries, consumers are pursuing much healthier diets overall and refraining from carbonates with high-sugar levels completely.

E-commerce and delivery platforms become even more crucial to players and consumers alike

E-commerce is a strong area for players to tap into and there is still much room for growth of the platform in Taiwan. The country has a well-established e-commerce ecosystem compared to some other countries and the event of COVID-19 has simply accelerated the process of both consumers and players alike embracing this platform.