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GLP-1 & Food: The Trends Tracker

A living page on how GLP-1 users shop, eat and snack, built from public datasets. Every number links to its source and date. Updated October 17, 2026. Maintained by Growthbuster, a CPG marketing agency in Torrance, CA.

The short version: roughly one in eight U.S. adults is on a GLP-1 drug today [1]. Households that start one cut grocery spending about 5% within six months, and savory snacks about 10% [2]. The categories that grow are small and specific: yogurt, fruit, nutrition bars, meat snacks, protein shakes [2][4]. If you sell food, this is the biggest shopper shift since the low-carb era, and most brands are still pretending it isn't happening.

1. How many people are on these drugs

  • 12% of U.S. adults say they are currently taking a GLP-1 (Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, Mounjaro and the rest), up 6 points in 18 months. 18% have taken one at some point. [1]
  • Use is highest among adults 50–64 (22%) and higher among women than men (15% vs 9%). [1]
  • By household, 23% of U.S. households have a user, per Circana (Nov 2025). [3]
  • The curve is steep: the Cornell/Numerator panel saw households with a user go from about 11% in late 2023 to more than 16% by mid-2024. [2]
  • Morgan Stanley now projects about 55 million U.S. users by 2035, up from its earlier 33 million, because of Medicare coverage and oral pills. [7] Its 2023 estimate was 24 million (7% of the population). [6]
  • Why it keeps climbing: the Wegovy pill was approved Dec 22, 2025, with a $149/month starting dose. [15] Cost is still the main reason people quit: 56% of users say the drugs are hard to afford, and 14% stopped because of price. [1]

2. What happens to the grocery basket

This is the part worth memorizing, because it is measured from receipts, not surveys.

  • Grocery spending falls 5.3% within six months of starting a GLP-1; more than 8% in higher-income households. Spending at fast food, coffee shops and other limited-service restaurants drops about 8%. (Cornell, Journal of Marketing Research, Dec 2025; ~150,000-household Numerator panel.) [2]
  • Among users who continue, lower food spending persists at least a year, though it narrows over time. [2]
  • Users with a goal of losing 15+ pounds (52% of users) cut spending 10% across 100+ categories in grocery, QSR and tobacco within six months. [4]
  • Back in Dec 2023, Numerator already saw buy rates down 5% to 20% across key grocery departments for weight-loss users. [5]
  • Morgan Stanley's patient survey: daily calorie intake down 20–30%; confections, sugary drinks and baked goods cut by as much as two-thirds. [6]
  • Circana's twist: GLP-1 users spend less on retail food and beverage but more at restaurants, and they still outspend non-users overall. [3]

3. Losers and winners by category

Direction Categories Source
Down hardest Savory snacks (about −10%), sweets, baked goods, cookies; even bread, meat and eggs declined [2]
Down Carbonated soft drinks, baked goods and salty snacks could fall up to 3% nationally by 2035 [6]
Down Snack-food growth: up to a $12 billion dent; up to 3% across salty, sweet and confectionery snacks [8]
Up Yogurt (the biggest gainer), fresh fruit, nutrition bars, meat snacks [2]
Up Protein shakes (+38%), superfoods (+58%), bone health (+23%), digestive health (+6%) vs. comparable non-users [4]
Up Products higher in protein, fiber and healthy fats; carbs and sugar declining [3]

About 70% of GLP-1 users who say they eat fewer calories also say they snack less (EY-Parthenon survey, as reported by CNBC, Mar 2026). [9] The same CNBC piece cites a JPMorgan estimate that GLP-1s could remove $30–55 billion in annual food and beverage sales as soon as 2030. [9]

4. What big food and retail have already said and done

When Who What Source
Oct 2023 Walmart U.S. CEO John Furner: GLP-1 shoppers are buying “less units, slightly less calories.” First big retailer to say it out loud. [10]
May 2024 Nestlé Launches Vital Pursuit, a frozen line built for GLP-1 users; 12 items at launch. [11]
Dec 2024 Conagra Announces the “On Track” badge on 26 Healthy Choice items starting January 2025: high protein, low calorie, good source of fiber. First major brand to print “GLP-1 friendly” on pack. [12]
Nov 2025 Circana Projects GLP-1 households will be 35% of U.S. food and beverage units by 2030. [3]
Mar 2026 Restaurants Chains add protein and fiber options and mini portions for GLP-1 diners. [9]

5. The drug timeline that drives the demand curve

  • Jun 4, 2021: FDA approves Wegovy (semaglutide) for chronic weight management, the first new obesity drug since 2014. [13]
  • Nov 8, 2023: FDA approves Zepbound (tirzepatide) for weight management. [14]
  • Dec 22, 2025: FDA approves the Wegovy pill, the first oral GLP-1 for weight loss; U.S. launch January 2026 at $149/month for the starting dose. [15]

Each step lowers the barrier (needle, price, prescriber) and the shopper base widens. Plan for the 2030 number, not today's.

6. What happens when people stop

  • Produce, personal care and food-storage purchases keep growing after discontinuation; beverages, refrigerated and frozen rebound. [3]
  • Candy and baked goods typically bounce back within three to six months of lapsing; fresh produce and meat stay elevated. [4]
  • Half of former users say they are likely to go back on the medication. [3]

Translation: the “GLP-1 shopper” is not one person. It is a rotating population moving on, off and back on, and the healthy habits outlast the prescription.

7. What this means if you make food (the operator's read)

Our founder has marketed better-for-you food since 2013: Quest Nutrition, Legendary Foods, then Growthbuster, which helped launch Magic Spoon, RightRice and more, and Perfy, the soda he founded, now in 1,000+ stores. Here is how we read the data above.

Portion is the new flavor

Calorie intake is down 20–30% per person [6]. A smaller pack at the same price point is not a downgrade to this shopper; it is the product. Restaurants already figured this out with mini meals [9].

Protein and fiber are the price of entry

Every winning category in sections 3 and 4 is protein- or fiber-led. The Conagra badge is literally “high protein, low calorie, good source of fiber.” [12] If your front panel cannot say those words, this shopper walks.

Sugar is the villain, not sweetness

Confections, sugary drinks and baked goods are cut by up to two-thirds [6]. That is a demand curve for low-sugar versions of the things people still want. Our founder built Perfy, a better-for-you soda with 20 calories and 2–4 g of sugar, sweetened with stevia and monk fruit, for exactly this shopper, and search behavior backs it: on Perfy's own Google Search Console, non-brand queries like “allulose soda” (491 impressions) and “monk fruit soda” (626 impressions) now outrank most of our product pages for impressions, while “glp 1 soda” is still a tiny but new query (50 impressions, Jul 15–Oct 14, 2026).

Say it on the pack

Conagra printed “GLP-1 friendly” on 26 SKUs in January 2025 [12]. Most challenger brands still won't. The shopper is looking for the signal; be the one giving it.

The second sip problem

GLP-1 users have slower digestion and zero tolerance for anything that sits badly. Our founder reviews protein bars on camera for the GLP-1 FRIEND channel and scores them on protein-to-sugar ratio, ingredients, taste and how your stomach feels an hour later. The most common fail is sugar alcohols, maltitol above all. A product this shopper buys once and never again is a velocity problem no ad budget fixes.

8. Data we'd like to add (and will, when it's public)

  • Conagra, Nestlé, PepsiCo and Walmart earnings-call remarks that quantify GLP-1 effects on their own numbers, as they are published.
  • SPINS and Circana category-level velocity on protein snacks, Greek yogurt and low-sugar beverages.
  • Perfy's quarterly GLP-1 search and store data, with figures we can show.

Have a dataset we should include? Send it; we credit every source.

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FAQ

How many Americans are on GLP-1 drugs right now?

KFF's November 2025 poll found 12% of U.S. adults currently taking a GLP-1 drug and 18% who have ever taken one. Circana counts 23% of U.S. households with a user as of November 2025. The two numbers measure different things (adults vs. households), so quote the one that fits your sentence.

Do GLP-1 users actually buy less food?

Yes, and it is measured, not surveyed. Cornell researchers matched Numerator purchase data for about 150,000 households to GLP-1 surveys: grocery spending fell 5.3% within six months of starting, more than 8% in higher-income households. Numerator's own hub shows a 10% cut across 100+ categories for users who want to lose 15 pounds or more.

Which categories go up?

Few, and modestly. In the Cornell study yogurt rose the most, then fresh fruit, nutrition bars and meat snacks. Numerator shows weight-loss users spending more on protein shakes (+38%), superfoods (+58%) and bone-health products (+23%) than comparable non-users.

What makes a product “GLP-1 friendly”?

There is no regulated definition. Conagra's On Track badge uses high protein, low calorie and a good source of fiber. Circana describes users seeking protein, fiber and healthy fats while cutting carbohydrates and sugar. Our working rule: small portion, real protein, low sugar, nothing that punishes a slowed-down stomach.

Does the effect last after people stop the drug?

Partly. Circana found produce purchases keep growing after discontinuation while beverages, refrigerated and frozen rebound. Numerator sees candy and baked goods bounce back within three to six months of lapsing. Cornell found spending effects shrink and become hard to distinguish from pre-adoption patterns after discontinuation.

How often is this page updated?

Quarterly, or sooner when a major dataset lands. Each figure links to its source and carries the source's date so you can check it yourself.

Sources

  1. KFF Health Tracking Poll: Prescription Drug Costs, Views on Trump Administration Actions, and GLP-1 Use — KFF, published Nov 14, 2025 (fielded Oct 27–Nov 2, 2025)
  2. Ozempic is changing the foods Americans buy — Cornell Chronicle, Dec 19, 2025, on Hristakeva & Liaukonyte, Journal of Marketing Research (published Dec 18, 2025), using Numerator purchase data
  3. GLP-1 Medication Users to Represent 35% of U.S. Food and Beverage Sales by 2030 — Circana, Nov 18, 2025
  4. Numerator GLP-1 Hub Reveals Purchase Trends From 30K Consumers — Numerator, Oct 13, 2025 (quarterly data July 2024–July 2025)
  5. GLP-1 Users Focused on Weight Loss are Decreasing Food Purchasing — Numerator, Dec 5, 2023
  6. Could Obesity Drugs Take a Bite Out of the Food Industry? — Morgan Stanley Research, Sep 2023 (survey of 300 patients)
  7. Morgan Stanley Research raises GLP-1 usage projection — Food Business News, Apr 8, 2026, on a Morgan Stanley brief published Apr 7, 2026
  8. Use of GLP-1 drugs by dieters may impact snack brands — EY-Parthenon, Feb 10, 2025
  9. GLP-1 diets: Restaurants add protein, fiber for weight loss drug users — CNBC, Mar 21, 2026 (cites EY-Parthenon, KPMG and JPMorgan)
  10. Users of weight loss drugs like Ozempic are buying less food, Walmart says — NBC News, Oct 5, 2023
  11. Nestlé to launch Vital Pursuit frozen food for GLP-1 users — CNBC, May 21, 2024
  12. Conagra Brands Introduces Badges on Select Healthy Choice Products, Leading Consumers to GLP-1-Friendly Options — Conagra Brands press release, Dec 12, 2024
  13. FDA Approves New Drug Treatment for Chronic Weight Management, First Since 2014 (Wegovy) — U.S. FDA release via PR Newswire, Jun 4, 2021
  14. FDA Approves New Medication for Chronic Weight Management (Zepbound) — U.S. FDA, Nov 8, 2023
  15. FDA approves Novo Nordisk's Wegovy pill, the first and only oral GLP-1 for weight loss in adults — Novo Nordisk via PR Newswire, Dec 22, 2025

Cite this page: Growthbuster. “GLP-1 & Food: The Trends Tracker.” growthbuster.com, updated October 17, 2026. https://growthbuster.com/pages/glp-1-food-trends. Free to quote and link; please credit Growthbuster and link back.

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