Food Authenticity Market

The Food Authenticity Market is valued at USD 9 Bn in 2026 and is projected to reach USD 14 Bn, growing at a CAGR of 6% by 2033.

Rising Food Frauds Causing Dent in Consumer Confidence to Bolster Growth of the Food Authenticity Market

Albeit testing for food authenticity is not new, the concept has received substantial attention since past couple of years owing to rising number of food fraud cases reported globally. According to UK National Food Crime Unit, the number of food fraud cases registered increased to 1193 cases in 2019 from 796 in 2015, with around 364 cases registered in the first quarter of 2019. Rising competition among food brands has increased the prevalence of food frauds resulting in deliberate substitution, misrepresentation of food content, tampering, misleading statement about food quality and faulty packaging.

Typically, food fraud includes intentional alterations carried out on the food content for economic gain, which is also referred to as Economically Motivated Adulteration (EMA). This not only challenges the food authenticity but also can potentially cause consumer health problems due to presence of undeclared adulterations or toxic substances. For instance, in 2008, in China due to addition of melamine in milk to enhance the perceived level of proteins, 6 deaths were recorded and over 50,000 infants were impacted by the adulterated milk consumed. According to Decernis Food Fraud Database, food products with higher food fraud notifications are dairy ingredients followed by seafood and poultry/meat products respectively. Acknowledgement of such registered notifications against food frauds has caused in a dent in consumer confidence in food products, resulting in an increased urgency for food authenticity testing, in turn complementing to the growth of the food authenticity market.

Meat Speciation Expected to Largely Contribute to the Valuation of the Food Authenticity Market

Meat speciation is essentially species identification from which the respective meat type has originated. The need for food authenticity in meat speciation is expected to witness high traction as it becomes an easy target for adulterators to alter the finished product. This has increased the need for meat speciation testing in a bid to ensure that the product is safe for human consumption. This aspect coupled with increasing incidences of meat fraud worldwide is likely to pave an opportunistic pathway in turn contributing to the growth of the food authenticity market.

Europe to Reflect Good Growth Potential for Food Authenticity Market

Analysis of the members in the EU Agri-FFN (Food Fraud Network) reveals that number of food fraud cases per year have doubled, from about 157 in 2016 to 349 cases in 2020, a 20% increase as compared to 2019. The main categories reported of food fraud were fats and oils, meat and fish products along with non-compliances in the movement of animals. This has resulted in incorporation of stringent food regulations in the region. Moreover, presence of a large number of food companies in Europe that are willing to follow the regulations coupled with rising food fraud cases has resulted in an increased scope of growth for the food authenticity market in the region. The FSA (Food Standard Agency) in UK is the regulating authority that focuses on promoting best food standards. FSA established the Food Fraud Unit and National Food Crime Unit that monitors food fraud cases related to miss labeling or adulterations of local as well as imported food products and is responsible for reporting illegal non-compliance apropos to food authenticity. This has created an opportunistic environment for food authenticity market players who can focus Europe as a potential region for growth in the coming years.

Global Food Authenticity Market: Competitive Landscape

Key players in the global food authenticity market are focusing on enhancing their market position by tapping new regional markets, particularly in the developed countries. Strategies such as mergers, acquisitions and collaborations are being adopted by key players as a means to achieve competitive edge in the long run. For instance, in 2019, UgenTec and Eurofins GeneScan Technologies GmbH entered in a strategic collaboration focusing on assay plug-ins development. The collaboration with allow Eurofins to deploy all its assays with automated reporting and analysis that will ensure a faster sample to result timing essential in feed, seed and food authenticity testing.

Few of the key companies in the global food authenticity market include:

• Eurofins Scientific
• SGS SA
• Intertek Group plc
• ALS Limited
• LGC Group
• Mérieux NutriSciences
• Microbac Laboratories Inc.
• EMSL Analytical Inc.
• Romer Labs Diagnostic GmbH
• Genetic ID NA Inc.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.
• Agilent Technologies Inc.
• Waters Corporation
• Bruker Corporation
• Bureau Veritas

Global Food Authenticity Market is Segmented as Below:

By Food Type

• Meat & Meat Products
• Dairy & Dairy Products
• Processed Foods
• Other Food Tested

By Target Testing

• Meat Speciation
• Country of Origin & Ageing
• Adulteration
• False Labeling

By Technology

• PCR-Based
• Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS)
• Isotope
• Immunoassay Based/ELISA
• Other Technologies

By Region

• North America
• Europe
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East & Africa