Functional Drinks: liquid wellness
Posted by Valentina @P-ink on 02.10.25
A beverage is no longer just a moment of pleasure or refreshment. Increasingly, it is designed to do something more: improve mood, promote concentration, support energy, aid digestion or even care for the skin. This is the world of functional beverages, a booming category that is redefining the soft drinks market.
What makes a drink "functional"?
A functional drink is formulated with ingredients that can provide targeted benefits: from chamomile and ashwagandha that promote calm and well-being, to caffeine and guarana that give energy, to probiotics, collagen or turmeric to support immune defenses and long-term health.
It's not just bottles or cans: the phenomenon includes soluble powders, concentrated shots, and functional waters, all of which share the goal of meeting the increasingly specific needs of the modern consumer.
A trend in numbers
The growth speaks for itself: since 2014, functional categories have grown +73 percent, compared to +22 percent for the rest of soft drinks. Today, more than a third of the industry's overall growth comes from this new frontier.
Chart: functional soft drink categories by market size (2024) and CAGR (2021-2024)
Source: European International Soft Drinks (2025ed).
Note: "Functional Powder Concentrates" is an unofficial segmentation based on sports and energy powder volumes. Growth reflects the entire segment.
The main categories into which we can divide functional drinks are:
- Energy drinks
- Sports drinks
- Bottled functional waters
- Powdered concentrates
Asia and Europe: two different worlds
If Asia leads the phenomenon thanks to a long tradition of natural ingredients transformed into modern, ready-to-drink formats, Europe moves more cautiously. The reason? Very restrictive regulations on health claims: EFSA rejects more than 70 percent of claims, forcing brands to focus on measurable narratives and values such as taste, natural ingredients, and sugar reduction.
The case of Dutch soda Lazipop, launched in 2023 with chicory fiber, is emblematic: no explicit gut health claims, but focus on naturalness and lightness.
Why now?
Behind the boom in functional beverages are strong cultural and social trends:
- The desire to feel good in an uncertain world.
- The search for practical, pleasant, everyday solutions perceived as more credible than "health pills."
- The influence of social media, which turn ingredients such as matcha or okra water into real viral phenomena (#Watertok, #Oatzempic, #Matcha).
TikTok: Evolution of the #WaterTok trend (July 2022 - May 2025)
Source: TikTok Creative; June 2025
Looking to the future
The next few years are predicted to see:
- Short term (1-2 years): explosion of micro-trends and litigation that will test brands.
- Medium-term (3-4 years): retailers will reorganize shelves based on functional benefits rather than product types.
- Long term (5 years): pushed personalization, thanks to big data and tailored nutrition.
In conclusion
The functional drinks trend is not a passing fad, but a true cultural transformation. Drinks that combine pleasure and wellness are winning over consumers, and for brands they represent an extraordinary opportunity for innovation.
At P-ink, we believe that packaging also plays a key role: a personalized cap or label is an integral part of the story a product tells. Because when it comes to wellness, even the details make a difference.