A visit to an Irish supermarket in recent years shows a clear trend. Protein wraps. Protein ice cream. Protein yoghurts. High-protein cheese. The list goes on. But does the Irish public really need all of this protein-enriched food?
Protein is one of the main nutrients in food, alongside carbohydrates and fats.
The nutrient builds and supports damaged muscles, organs, skin, hair and nails using smaller units called amino acids.
It’s driven by a number of trends, according to nutritionists and dietitians, but social media is a big factor.
Online fitness and wellness influencers consistently tout protein as being an excellent tool in fat loss.
They maintain that higher-protein foods keep people feeling fuller for longer, reducing snacking and enabling people to more easily stay within their calorie deficit.
That largely depends on your activity level, age and weight.
The recommended daily intake for the population in general is 0.8g of protein per kilogramme of body weight, so somebody weighing 60kg would need 48g.
[ Protein: Are we eating enough of it? And is ‘high protein’ branding just a fad? Opens in new window ]
Those who do a lot of exercise or strength training would have higher protein requirements.
In a set of updated scientific recommendations for food-based dietary guidelines for older adults published in 2021, the Food Safety Authority of Ireland said healthy older adults should consume a more protein-dense diet than the general adult population.
It recommended that older adults at risk of frailty, sarcopenia and undernutrition eat a minimum of 1–1.2g of protein per kilogramme of body weight each day to preserve muscle mass.
Research would suggest yes. The National Adult Nutrition Survey II, published in 2024, found Irish adults got 18 per cent of their total energy from protein.
And this is a worldwide phenomenon. The US is also witnessing this explosion in protein products, but a government report found nearly 90 percent of Americans have enough protein in their diets.
Safefood research from 2019 found that the way these products were being marketed would lead people to believe they were healthy alternatives.
However, 77 per cent of the high-protein bars surveyed were high in saturated fat and a source of added salt and sugar, while high-protein yoghurts and quark, dairy drinks and smoothies surveyed were a source of added salt and sugar.
If company accounts are anything to go by, protein’s marketing success is undeniable.
Kilkenny-based nutrition group Glanbia reported a 7 per cent jump in revenue for the first six months of the year, which included a 25 per cent spike in demand for its premium protein powder product, Optimum Nutrition.