Protein washing: is it time to think beyond adding protein?

As protein moves from gym shakes into coffee, chocolate, cereals, snacks, burger buns and confectionery, Seedlab Australia says FMCG brands need to be more thoughtful about whether protein genuinely adds value, or whether it risks becoming the next overused health claim.

Seedlab Australia is a Woolworths-supported FMCG business program that has supported more than 600 founders across Australia and New Zealand, working with emerging brands across food, beverage, personal care, home care and pet care.

The conversation follows growing global attention around the ‘protein-in-everything’ trend, with rising demand for high-protein snacks, fortified foods and GLP-1-adjacent products placing pressure on whey supply and driving up ingredient costs.

Kenna MacTavish, Managing Director of Seedlab Australia, said protein has become one of the most commercially powerful claims in FMCG because consumers understand it quickly.

“Protein is the marketable macro. Consumers immediately associate it with feeling fuller, getting stronger, supporting health goals and making a product feel more functional,” MacTavish said.

“That is why it appears across so many categories, from snacks and drinks to chocolate, coffee and bakery. But the question for brands is not just ‘can we add protein?’ It is ‘does the consumer actually care about this product having protein, and does it make sense for what the product is trying to do?’”

MacTavish said the issue is not protein itself, but brands using it as a shortcut claim when it is not central to the product, audience or consumer need.

“Smaller brands can often lead with more purpose because they are usually building from a real problem or founder insight, rather than simply adding a claim because the market is paying attention,” MacTavish said.

Seedlab brands such as Googys, which produces protein chocolate using egg protein, and Innerbloom Coffee show how emerging FMCG brands are approaching protein in more considered ways.

Innerbloom Coffee founder Ollie Puddick said the brand’s focus has been on creating a product where protein supports the overall function, rather than overpowering the experience.

“Everyone thinks of protein as ‘let’s just get the most possible protein into a drink or format’, but what we’re seeing is that our customers appreciate the function, while flavour is what really sets the product apart.

“By not overloading the product with protein, we can still deliver a functional drink that tastes really good. It’s all good and well having 40 grams of protein in a product, but if the taste doesn’t deliver, people aren’t going to come back for it,” Puddick said.

MacTavish said brands also need to consider the commercial risk of building products around trend-led ingredients, particularly as demand for whey places pressure on supply and pricing.

“We have seen this before with ingredients that suddenly become culturally dominant, like pistachio. When demand spikes, supply and cost pressures follow, and that can become a real issue for small brands operating on tight margins,” MacTavish said.

MacTavish said the stronger opportunity lies in ‘value-plus’ products, where consumers are looking less at what a product removes and more at what it adds.

“For a long time, better-for-you products were built around what they did not contain. But consumers are increasingly asking what a product gives them, whether that is protein, fibre, satiety, convenience, performance or a clearer functional benefit,” MacTavish said.

“There will be protein fatigue if consumers feel like protein is being added to everything without much thought. The brands that will do well are the ones that can answer why protein belongs in the product, what role it plays, and why the consumer should pay attention,” MacTavish said.

Image credit: iStock.com/Ivan Bajic