Millennials are Baby Boomers’ kids, and while they share a few of the
same traits, they’re very different from their parents. Millennials
are more educated as a generation than their parents, but
they entered the workforce during the Great Recession, which reduced
their earning power and shifted their focus away from starting a family and
owning a home to making ends meet. On average, Millennials are getting
married,buying homes, and starting families later than their Boomer
counterparts.¹ Millennials tend to have a much more liberal view of
politics than their parents, especially when it comes to racial equality,
immigration, and foreign policy.² They are the second most diverse
generation behind Gen Z, and they’re defined by their search for
meaningful experiences and their drive for independence.
59% of Gen Z from 18 to 20 years old are pursuing college
48% of Gen Z from ages 6 to 12 years old are racial or ethinic minorities
25% of Gen Z from 6 to 12 years old are hispanic
43% of Gen Z from 6 to 17 years old are more likely than millenials to live with a college educated parent
Why Are They Important?
Our Take
The marketing world has focused on Millennials for a long time. Once thought to be an over-privileged, ideological, and even spoiled generation, they’re now all grown up (with the oldest Millennials starting to celebrate their 40th birthdays!) and ready to change the world even more. They’re starting to get more mainstream in their spending and believe brands should have a purpose and a mission. They’re comfortable with brands taking a political, environmental, and social stance, and they’re loyal to those brands (in fact, 60% of millennials say they feel emotionally connected to brands.)
Key Areas of Focus
Focus on Immune Support
Healthy Aging Starts Now
Provide an Experience
Millennials, more than any other generation, indicate that they are more focused on immune system support now
than they were prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. They also claim they will continue this focus into the future,
even once COVID-19 isn’t such a threat. Immunity was on the rise for claims before the pandemic, but COVID-19
increased the demand for immunity-related claims over the past year and a half. According to Mintel, more than
one-third of US adults state they are more concerned about their immune system health now than they were a
year prior. Millennials say they prefer getting immune-boosting benefits through beverages naturally high in
immune-supporting ingredients…and we have just the thing.
We don’t want to scare anyone, so we’re going to say this once and not repeat it: Millennials are aging. THERE!
We said it, and now we can move on. Believe it or not, the oldest Millennials are now approaching 40 and well into
their adult years. According to Mintel, 50% of Millennials agree they are more focused on their health than they
were ten years ago. They focus on preventative health and appreciate ingredients that pair benefits to address
their current health concerns with long-term benefits, like better sleep and anxiety relief. Now is the time for
Millennials to start taking their overall health and wellness seriously, and brands can help them be successful and
proactive healthy agers.
More than half of Millennials are now parents. While experiences and personalization still matter to this
generation, their definition of what they need an experience to be has changed drastically over the past decade.
Now, over 70% of Millennial parents admit that they make food and beverage purchases strictly “because their
children like it,” and over 60% indicate that price plays a significant role in their purchasing decisions. An
experience for a Millennial nowadays is likely one the entire family can enjoy together, one that won’t stretch
their budget, and one they know their kids will eat (at least most of the time…you can’t win ’em all, and children
are fickle creatures). Consider products that need a little preparation, are simple enough for kids to help, and
nutritious enough for parents to approve.
Immunity
Healthy Aging
The Experience
Sleep Aid for Increased Cognitive Function Gummy
Glanbia Nutritionals Ingredients
• All N™ Off-the-Shelf Sleep Premix: This Off-the-Shelf Sleep premix has been pre-formulated with active ingredients, ready to use as a base for new product formulations. The Sleep premix provides a source of commonly used scientifically supported sleep and relaxation ingredients to boost sleep supplement formulations. The Sleep premix features the specialized active ingredient PepForm® Tryptophan*.
* PepForm® Tryptophan: A sleep aid with proven next-day cognitive benefits that helps promote the body’s natural melatonin without the addition of hormones in a more soluble and bioavailable way. Pepform Tryptophan uses our PepForm® technology, which binds free-form amino acids to peptides isolated from whey resulting in significant improvement to the solubility and utilization of amino acids.
DIY Protein Bite Mix
Glanbia Nutritionals Ingredients
• BarPro® 291: A partially hydrolyzed milk protein isolate with enhanced functional characteristics designed for extending the shelf life of protein fortified nutrition bars. This protein helps to minimize bar hardness and can be used as the sole protein source in making nutritional bars with high levels of dairy protein.
• BarPro® 585: An rBST-free milk protein isolate, ultrafiltered from Grade A milk.
• BevChia™: An all-natural specially milled white chia seed that has been heat-treated using our MicroSure™ Plus process. This treatment involves a minimum of 5-log validation kill step and results in the safest chia in the industry.
Protein + Immunity Salted Caramel RTM
Glanbia Nutritionals Ingredients
Salibra® 702 IP: An instantized concentrated whey protein produced using our selective transfer membrane system, which concentrates whey components to enhance health and well-being.
Click Here for more information on our Millennials concepts,
ingredient solutions, and insights.
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Millennials Are Better Educated Than Prior Generations
Educational attainment of 25 to 37 year-olds (%)
Less than high school graduate
High school graduate
Some college
Bachelor's degree or higher
Silent (1968)
Early Boomer (1982)
Late Boomer (1989)
Gen X (2001)
Millennial (2018)
Note: Figures may not add to 100% due to rounding. “High school graduate” includes those who have a high school diploma or its equivalent, such as a GED certificate. “Some college” includes those with an associate degree and those who attended college but did not obtain a completed 12th grade (regardless of diploma status) and “bachelor’s degree or higher” includes those who completed at least four years of college (regardless of degree status).
Millennials now outnumber Baby Boomers in the US, driven in large part by immigration. This also contributes to their increasingly diverse background. They are buying homes, starting families, and overtaking the job market. Like their younger Gen Z cohorts, Millennials have valued access over ownership and are more likely to rent versus buy a home, ride-share versus own a car, and stream versus purchase entertainment.³ They are one of the first generations to view health and wellness as a daily part of life, not just “not getting sick” but being proactive about their overall well-being.³ They are idealistic, optimistic and value the experience of purchases versus long-term investments (think spending money on travel and dining experiences rather than homes). Millennials have seen the world go from dial-up internet to constant connectivity, so they’re used to fast-paced change and instant gratification.
Milennials are also less likely to be married than previous generations at the same age!
Source: Pew Research Center analysis of 1968, 1982, 1989, 2001, and 2018 Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplements (IPUMS)
PEW RESEARCH CENTER
Healthy Aging: Section 1 Overview
Click Here
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Millennials are also very diverse and appreciate and celebrate other cultures. They’re open to trying new, innovative products across multiple industries, and the food and beverage industry is no different. They are motivated to stay healthy as they enter midlife, with 61% stating they feel it’s important to control their overall health and well-being. Millennials in the US are the most likely generation to state that they’ve tried or are interested in trying personalized supplements5, and they’re all about prevention and personalization.