GLP-1 UK: The Class Divide Food and Drink Brands Should Know

One in five UK adults is currently taking, has taken, or is actively considering a GLP-1 weight loss medication. That is a significant consumer base with significantly reduced appetites. Not great news for the food and drink industry, but as ever, any challenge can be an opportunity when armed with strong insight!

New data from Lumina Intelligence’s recent webinar shows there is not just one type of GLP-1 consumer. There are at least two, separated by class, age and geography, and they want completely different things. This class divide should inform how brands in retail and foodservice approach this market.

Who is the GLP-1 consumer in the UK?

Currently 4.7% of UK adults are taking GLP-1, with 9.6% actively considering it, with around 95% funding it themselves. Around 66% of current users fall into the ABC1 socioeconomic bracket. Indeed, according to Lumina data, the typical UK GLP-1 user is an affluent millennial aged 25-34, London-based, and paying privately.

That profile creates a problem. Government data shows the highest obesity prevalence is in the 55-74 age group, concentrated outside London in areas like the northeast. Yet those are precisely the groups underrepresented in GLP-1 uptake currently. The medication is reaching the least clinically at-risk demographic first, not because of need but because of cost. With 95% of users paying privately, this is still a wealth issue as much as a health one.

So, in reality it’s the demographic profile of a GLP-1 user that predicts their food behaviour far more reliably than the medication itself.

Two cohorts. Completely different needs.

Consider how skewed the current user base is. Affluent millennials in London make up 30% of GLP-1 users but just 5% of the UK population. They were already quality-driven, brand-conscious and health-aware before the medication. On it, those tendencies intensify. They want nutrient-dense, high-protein, clean-label products and will pay a premium for them.

Class C-D users outside London and outside the millennial bracket are a different story. Less quality-driven, less brand-conscious, less health-led than the typical person in their demographic. The premium GLP-1-targeted innovation flooding the market right now, products at £7 a portion, was never built for them and will never resonate.

However, one thing cuts across both groups: protein. GLP-1 users overtrade on high-protein products regardless of age, income or postcode. Fibre is the same story. Beyond those two, what someone earns and where they live tells you far more about their food behaviour than the jab in their fridge.

What does GLP-1 mean for retail food and drink brands?

For retail, GLP-1 strategy should centre on high-protein and high-fibre credentials, smaller formats and single-serve options. The current core user is affluent and quality-driven. The coming wave, as NHS rollout broadens, will be a class C-D consumer who needs nutritional support quietly embedded in familiar products, not a premium range.

The GLP-1-adjacent innovation already in market reflects who is currently using. Protein matcha at Starbucks. High-fibre credentials on drinks that never used to claim them. M&S nutrient-dense ranges. These are landing because they are built for an affluent, health-led millennial already engaged with these products. GLP-1 users overtrade in convenience retail for the same reason: that is where urban millennials already shop.

That audience will change. Pill formats are available in the US and expected in UK private markets soon. NHS rollout will follow. When the user base broadens into class C-D groups, a GLP-1 badge will not cut it. That cohort needs familiar products reformulated for better nutritional density, with clear and simple on-pack guidance. The brands planning for that now are the ones who will be ready.

How is GLP-1 changing behaviour in foodservice?

GLP-1 users are not retreating from eating out. 52% had an out of home occasion in the past week, compared to 50.3% of the total population. But that headline figure hides a more important story: where they go and why has shifted considerably. The frequency is holding. The mission driving it has changed.

The occasions dropping off are the ones most dependent on appetite: the habitual grab when you are hungry, the big treat meal where appetite justified the bill. Without that hunger driver, those occasions lose their purpose. QSRs are under trading with current GLP-1 users as a direct result.

What is growing are occasions where food is not the primary point. Pubs and coffee shops are holding up because the visit is about company and environment. Family meals are resilient because the social dynamic outweighs individual appetite. Brunch is showing a quiet uptick: logical for someone who no longer feels compelled to eat breakfast and lunch separately.

Fat Duck and Otto’s have responded with mindful-portion menus. Pret has trialled half-size baguettes (although possibly also driven by a more competitive price point). These work because the current GLP-1 user will pay for something excellent in a format they can finish. For QSRs, the risk is losing the habitual visit pattern while users are on the medication. Although data would suggest they do come back after stopping, often more frequently. The job is keeping them coming in now.

The bigger GLP-1 shift is still coming

The prediction is that these medications are here to stay and will simply become part of everyday life, especially with NHS rollout and the pill coming down the line.

Added to this, there is another level of driver that the market has barely begun to address. Users eating significantly less are reporting fatigue and low mood, a direct consequence of reduced nutritional intake. Offering a market opportunity for food and drink innovation that addresses this and offers a ‘boost’ to GLP-1 users. With this functional ingredients, gut-brain health and GLP-1 consumer needs are converging. That product development space barely exists yet in retail or foodservice and is one that is ripe for innovation.

The brands that lead will be those who plan for both sides of the class divide: the quality-conscious, health-led early adopter the market currently serves well, and the broader, less health-driven mass market that the pill format and NHS rollout will bring. Those two consumers need different things.

With thanks to Flora Zwolinski and the team at Lumina Intelligence for sharing their GLP-1 consumer tracking data, and to Nick Robinson at FoodNavigator for his insight during the Q&A.

To talk through what the GLP-1 shift means for your retail or foodservice marketing strategy, get in touch with the jellybean team here.