Nutrition is expected to become the next "holy place of milk and honey" in the consumer industry.
Author | fairy
Edit | Eucommia
来源 | 观潮新消费（ID：TideSight）
At the beginning of 2023, a niche nutritional product was snapped up, and it was among the hot search entries along with mass consumer goods such as electrolyte water, canned food, montmorillonite powder, and ibuprofen - this nutritional product is coenzyme Q10.
Driven by the demand for "Yangkang myocarditis", the search volume of coenzyme Q10 soared by 2500% at that time, and major manufacturers have reported that they are out of stock, which is also one of the few highlight moments when it breaks into the public eye.
Although many experts came out to refute the rumors at that time, confirming that coenzyme Q10 does not have the effect of preventing myocarditis, let alone treatment, for the Chinese people whose concept of health preservation is increasingly strengthened, after this battle, coenzyme Q10 is no longer the existence of "no such person".
As coenzyme Q10 gradually became a household name, consumers were surprised to find that 90% of the global production capacity of this little-known nutritional product in China was occupied by Chinese companies.
Since the first coenzyme Q10 product was approved for marketing, the development of coenzyme Q10 in China has only been 18 years.
The "silver economy" has driven the strong growth of coenzyme Q10
Coenzymes, as the name suggests, refer to the cofactors of enzymes, which help enzymes exert their catalytic role and promote the smooth progress of biochemical reactions.
Coenzyme Q10 is a type of coenzyme that is involved in energy conversion during cellular metabolism and is key to cellular energy production. It is widely found in our cells, especially in energy-hungry organs such as the heart, liver, and kidneys, and is therefore seen as a key factor in maintaining the body's vitality and supporting energy-hungry organs.
In addition to promoting energy production, coenzymes also have antioxidant and anti-aging properties; Supports heart health; It has biological effects such as improving athletic performance and reducing fatigue, and is called a "universal nutrient" by Nobel laureate Linus · Carl ·Pauling.
At present, coenzyme Q10 is widely used in the field of drugs and health care products, and in the field of drug treatment, coenzyme Q10 can play a role in protecting cardiovascular and adjuvant cancer treatment. In the field of health care products, coenzyme Q10 helps to enhance immunity, anti-oxidation, anti-fatigue, beauty and skin care, etc.
In addition to drugs and health care products, coenzyme Q10 raw materials are also partially used in the cosmetics industry, Huajing Intelligence Network report pointed out that health care products, drugs and cosmetics are the main areas of coenzyme Q10 applications, of which health care products accounted for the highest proportion, reaching 61%.
Unlike vitamins and minerals (calcium, iron, zinc, selenium, etc.), coenzyme Q10 can be synthesized by the human body, so many experts point out that for healthy people, there is no need to supplement coenzyme Q10.
As a result, despite its excellent efficacy, coenzyme Q10 is not as widely known as vitamins and minerals, and its market size is extremely limited, with the global market size of Coenzyme Q10 being only $492 million as of 2021.
From a global perspective, the highest proportion of coenzyme Q10 applications is in North America, accounting for about 55% of the market share, followed by Asia, accounting for 34%, of which the Chinese market size is only 426 million yuan as of 2021.
It is worth mentioning that with age, the level of synthetic CoQ10 in the body gradually decreases, and people with certain medical conditions such as heart disease also have lower levels of CoQ10 in the body.
Therefore, with the intensification of population aging, coenzyme Q10 is ushering in a period of rapid growth by taking advantage of the "silver economy".
The "2022 Insights into the Consumption Trend of the Fourth Meal of Family Nutrition" pointed out that among the health and nutrition categories preferred by middle-aged and elderly people, vitamins and elements such as calcium, iron and zinc occupy the first and second positions respectively, and coenzyme Q10 ranks third, higher than popular categories such as collagen, probiotics, and melatonin.
At the beginning of 2023, the "Yangkang" effect after the end of epidemic prevention and control has made coenzyme Q10 with the effect of "protecting the heart" quickly popular, and the coenzyme Q10 products under brands such as Tomson By-Health, Sveish, and Tongrentang have achieved monthly sales of more than 10,000 in a short period of time.
In 2023, coenzyme Q10 was shortlisted for the "Top Ten Commodities of Taobao in 2023", and the hot search popularity value of Taobao soared to 9.23 million.
Moojing Insight data pointed out that from December 2022 to November 2023, the number of voices on the topic of coenzyme Q10 on major media platforms reached 101,000 times, and during the same period, the sales of coenzyme Q10-related products on mainstream e-commerce platforms were about 3.13 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 94.8%.
It is also worth mentioning that the current young and middle-aged people are facing the dual pressure of the workplace and family, and many diseases that originally belonged to the category of middle-aged and elderly people have begun to show signs of youth. For example, cardiovascular diseases, according to the White Paper on Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Health among Young and Middle-aged People in China, 44.3% of the surveyed population (20 to 59 years old) are diseased/high-risk groups aged 20 to 39.
Up to now, there have been more than 110,000 notes related to "coenzyme Q10" and more than 2,000 related products on the Xiaohongshu platform. According to Mojing Insight's research, the people who posted on the topic of coenzyme Q10 were mainly people including 21-35.
Whether it is the growing "silver economy" or the ever-younger health trend, Coenzyme Q10 can stand out from niche nutrition and move towards popularization.
Of course, the other key to all of this is supply, and Chinese companies are well prepared for this.
Monopoly of 90% of the world's production capacity
The discovery of coenzyme Q10 can be traced back to the 50s of the last century, in 1958, Dr. Karl Folkers of the University of Texas United States determined the chemical structure of coenzyme Q10, and produced coenzyme Q10 for the first time in the laboratory by microbial fermentation.
Since then, a large number of basic research on coenzyme Q10 has been vigorously carried out, and after the 70s, the industrial mass production of coenzyme Q10 began to gradually land.
During this period, the main production area of coenzyme Q10 was Japan, and in 1974, Japan Nisshin Milling Co., Ltd. realized the industrial production of coenzyme Q10 using semi-synthetic method and used it as a drug for the treatment of heart disease.
Japan was also the first country to develop and produce CoQ10, and in the early stage, 90% of the world's CoQ10 supply came from Japan. Four Japanese companies, Zhongbuchi Chemical, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co., Ltd., Asahi Kasei Co., Ltd., and Nissin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., have monopolized the supply of coenzyme Q10 for a long time.
In 1982, the Department of Drug Administration of the Ministry of Health of the People's Republic of China approved Coenzyme Q10 as a prescription drug for the clinical treatment of cardiovascular diseases, and was published in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia.
After the 21st century, with the maturity of coenzyme Q10 production technology and the vigorous development of overseas markets, the industrialization process of coenzyme Q10 in mainland China began to accelerate, and gradually replaced Japan as the core of global coenzyme Q10 production.
Coenzyme Q10 is a typical export-oriented industry in China, and data from Huajing Intelligence Network shows that in 2021, the output of coenzyme Q10 in mainland China will exceed 1,300 tons, of which the domestic demand will only exceed 200 tons.
A large number of coenzyme Q10 raw materials are exported to all parts of the world, according to data from the General Administration of Customs, from January to October 2022, the export volume of coenzyme Q10 in mainland China was 944.8 tons, of which United States was the largest export market, accounting for 60.17%.
From the perspective of enterprises, Jindawei's production scale in 2021 will account for 29.43%, and it is the "number one player" in the domestic coenzyme Q10 field.
Jindawei was founded in 1997, and its founder, Jiang Bin, was engaged in foreign trade in an amino acid import and export enterprise in Xiamen before starting his business.
In 1994, the National Bureau of Statistics conducted a survey of 35 large and medium-sized cities, and more than 30% of families would buy health food as gifts for relatives and friends. The wave of entrepreneurship in the health care products industry has also been repeated, and the smash hit products such as "Sanzhu Oral Liquid" and "Chinese Turtle Essence" have all come out at this time.
The young Jiang Bin is also looking for opportunities, but he does not directly do consumer goods, he is deeply rooted in the industry, he keenly found that most of the raw materials of these health care products rely on imports, so Jiang Bin directly started the business of raw materials, and is committed to the localization of raw materials.
After decades of development, before its listing in 2011, Jindawei has gained a firm foothold in a number of raw material tracks, and is not only one of the largest coenzyme Q10 manufacturers in China, but also occupies the forefront of the world in the field of vitamin A and vitamin D3.
(Source: Jindawei prospectus)
After Jindawei went public, Jiang Bin began to think about the future direction of the company, "If we develop downstream, we have the advantage of self-developed raw material quality, and the health care products industry has broad prospects, and the market in developed countries such as United States is relatively mature, this road may work." Since then, Jindawei has begun to look for suitable targets around the world, and from 2015 to 2021, it has successively acquired and invested in 11 companies.
Today, Jindawei covers six categories of raw materials such as coenzyme Q10, NMN, DHA, ARA, vitamin K2, vitamin A and D3 on the raw material side, and has five major brand matrices such as Doctor's Best, Wukun, Zipfizz, ProSupps and LEAN BODY on the brand side, and has become a whole industry chain company including upstream raw material supply, midstream preparation production and downstream brand operation.
According to the 2023 financial report, Jindawei's annual revenue exceeded 3.1 billion yuan. Although the nutraceutical business has become the company's core business, as the world's leading supplier of coenzyme Q10 raw materials, coenzyme Q10 series products still account for 23.65% of the revenue.
The coenzyme Q10 industry is highly concentrated, and in addition to Jindawei, the main domestic manufacturers of coenzyme Q10 also include Shenzhou Biotechnology, Xinhecheng and Zhejiang Medicine. Today, China's coenzyme Q10 production capacity accounts for more than 90% of the world's total.
epilogue
With the popularization of coenzyme Q10, its products are becoming more and more close to consumer products.
In terms of application fields, with the enhancement of consumers' awareness of anti-aging and anti-aging, coenzyme Q10 is increasingly used in cosmetics products in addition to health care products and medicines.
According to the "New Youth Anti-Aging Attitude Survey Report", nearly sixty percent of the respondents began to feel the pressure of aging between the ages of 20 and 30; According to iiMedia statistics, in addition to moisturizing and hydrating, anti-aging has become the second biggest demand, with more than 55% of consumers seeking anti-aging products.
As one of the most important lipid antioxidants, Coenzyme Q10 has been added to the cosmetic ingredient list by many brands such as Helena, Gu Yu, Dr. E'er, Nivea, and Afu.
From the perspective of product form, most of the previous coenzyme Q10 products belonged to the health care product industry, and the products were mostly capsules and tablets, which were closer to drugs. Nowadays, gummy dosage forms are gradually becoming popular, such as the standard for coenzyme Q10 gummy dosage forms formulated by Xianle Health, which passed the review of the United States Pharmacopeia Commission in July this year and will be implemented globally on December 1.
For a long time, the standards in the field of nutrition products have been mostly formulated by European and United States countries, and the implementation of the standard for the dosage form of Coenzyme Q10 gummies of Xianle Health means that China has taken a big step forward in the field of independent innovation in the field of nutritional products.
Not only coenzyme Q10, but the entire nutrition industry has also ushered in profound changes in recent years.
In terms of product form, the attributes of drugs are increasingly stripped, and the development is in the direction of light health preservation and snack form; In terms of product research and development, more attention is paid to scenario-based and age-specific, and the boundaries of the nutrition track are extended in a subdivided context; In terms of channels, it has shifted from relying on direct sales and pharmacies to omni-channel.
On the whole, nutrition products have gradually transitioned from focusing on "one old and one young" to "whole family nutrition", and under the "4+2+1" family consumption model, nutrition consumption has increased significantly in terms of population size and consumption frequency.
According to the statistics of Tmall Health, the number of annual purchasing users of Tmall Health in 2023 will be nearly 300 million, and the average annual purchase frequency per capita will exceed 5 times, reaching a transaction scale of 100 billion yuan.
At present, adult health, sports health, women's health and middle-aged and elderly health and other subdivisions are emerging, and these more imaginative markets will also become the "holy land flowing with milk and honey" in the future of nutritional products.
Nutrition products have entered the eve of an outbreak in China.