Even as the cola wars rage on, with Reliance brand Campa Cola currently giving others a run for their money, a ‘healthy’ drink wave is equally strong. Even the cola companies are reporting higher sales for no-sugar variants.
With health and wellness top priority for consumers, brands are following suit with a wide range of innovative drinks like flavoured tonic water, low sugar and no sugar juices and sodas.
The founder of homegrown natural fruit flavoured sparkling water brand Polka Pop, launched in 2021, Gaurav Khemka is bullish this summer. “We are expecting a good spike in sales this year. More people are moving away from sugar, and a harsher summer will have higher demand for drinks sans sugar. We have grown 4x since launch, and expect 5x growth by the end of 2025,” said Khemka. The brand is available on all quick commerce platforms, and produces 150,000 bottles a month.
Mumbai-based Habhit Wellness has various coconut water, basil seed drinks and juices under brands Alpha 8, Coco Nirvana, Mojo Mojo and Mojoco (tender coconut water).
Paper Boat (Hector Beverages) has zero-sugar sparkling water in apple and cranberry flavours. Gujarat-based Dadu Fresh has various fruit juices such as mangosteen, lychee, mixed berries, soursop, anjeer, jamun, saffron mango, to name a few. Selling worldwide with a presence in over 90 countries is Thailand-based Mogu Mogu, which is flavoured coconut water.
“In a country with predominantly hot climate, coconut water should be national drink, and it will shoot up from where it is now in the next five years,” said Bharat Bhalla, co-founder of instant food brand Yu Foods, which last year entered the 100% fruit juice category, offering flavours like berry blast, cranberry tropical punch and orange burst, besides coconut water.
“We saw a huge gap in the fairly competitive ‘pure’ pack category. Unlike other brands using reconstituted coconut powder, our coconut water is natural and pure. There are no acidity regulators or added sugar and preservatives in juices too,” said Bhalla, whose products have garnered double-digit market share in the premium category in the past three months. The brand is planning a million units a month, which is 8x from its production last year. “We aspire for at least 40% market share in the coconut water segment across Q-commerce this year,” added Bhalla.
Dadu Fresh is eyeing 20% growth this year, and plans to expand to major cities in Gujarat via Swiggy and Blinkit. “We started in October last year and added flavours like jackfruit, rambutan, avocado with mango, and tamarind,” said Sachin Bhuva, director R&D, Dadu Fresh, who plans to target metro cities with its current production of 1,000 cans per day.
PepsiCo is looking to buy prebiotic soda brand Poppi for $1.95 billion, expanding into the ‘healthier soda’ category while Coca-Cola is expanding its Simply brand to launch a prebiotic soda called ‘Simply Pop’.
The global better-for-you beverages market is forecast to expand at $484 million by 2034. The no-added sugar juice category has been reporting 110% growth since last year. Reportedly, an increase in demand for low-sugar and no-sugar beverages in India surged in 2024, with sales doubling to reach Rs 700-750 crore following a shift in consumer preferences influenced by rising health concerns, including diabetes.
Dr Anshu Alok, senior consultant, endocrinology & diabetes, Max Smart Super Speciality Hospital, Saket Delhi, said: “A key concern with some health drinks is the presence of added caffeine, artificial flavours, colours, or dyes, the long-term safety of which remains uncertain. But, they can be a better alternative to traditional sugary beverages if consumed occasionally.”
The landscape is witnessing the emergence of smaller, niche brands catering to specific consumer segments, such as organic, natural, and low-sugar energy drinks, suggests NielsenIQ, even as FMCG players are focusing on product innovation and expanding their product range.
The Indian non-alcoholic beverage segment size, represented by companies such as PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Bisleri, Tata Group, and Campa (Reliance Industries), is an upwards of Rs 60,000 crore.
According to Varun Beverages, PepsiCo’s bottling partner, in CY2024, mix of low sugar/no sugar products increased to about 53% of consolidated sales volumes from about 42% in CY2023. In India, the brand has launched sugar-free versions of 7 Up, Pepsi Black, and Gatorade, and anticipates adding more soon. “With temperature set to rise we anticipate strong demand across our beverage portfolio,” said a PepsiCo India spokesperson.
Coca-Cola Zero Sugar saw strong growth globally in the fourth quarter of 2024, with case volumes up 13%. Coca-Cola’s low- and no-calorie beverages include Coke Zero, Diet Coke, and Sprite Zero while functional drinks like Bodyarmor Lyte, Charged, and Honest Tea, tap the growing interest in hydration and wellness.
In the fruit juices with no added sugar category, Réal, from Dabur India, recently launched a new campaign. “Fruit juices provide a refreshing and nutritious way to stay hydrated with no added sugar. We are innovating with new flavours to cater to evolving consumer preferences,” said Monisha Prasher, marketing head, beverages, Dabur India, which last year cut added sugar in juices by 21% from the 2018 baseline, and aims for further 3% reduction across two-thirds of its beverage portfolio.
Nielson data suggests, in 2024, the no-added sugar juices industry grew by 10.4% in 2024. No/low sugar claims have been prevalent, with 21% of launches making this claim from July 2019 to June 2024, according to Mintel. Sugar-consciousness is seen across food and drink categories with 36% of Indians concerned about the sugar content of packaged non-alcoholic drinks.
For Lavanya Anand, co-founder of Peer Drinks that has low and zero calorie tonic water along with flavoured tonics such as mint and bitter lemon, the healthy drinks category is growing fast with many new brands and products coming in. “We expect a wave of clean-label, low-calorie beverages without the sugar overload as consumers are increasingly looking for refreshing options that not only hydrate but also offer wellness benefits,” said Anand.
Barista offers sugar-free iced teas. “We are in the process of introducing sugar-free variants of all our frappes to further expand our health-friendly offerings. For 2025, we anticipate a 20-25% growth in overall business, driven by rising demand for healthier options,” said Rajat Agrawal, CEO, Barista Coffee.