Yogurts, pasta, but also cheese, ice cream and sausages: more and more high-protein versions of already marketed products are invading the shelves of supermarkets, benefiting from very advanced marketing despite their limited health benefits.
"It's really a surge," assures Matteo Neri, research director at Xerfi. Between 2020 and 2024, the turnover of high-protein products – driven mainly by yogurts and skyr – increased from around 70 to more than 380 million euros.
"It's quite considerable and the range continues to expand: Justin Bridou sausage, Babybel cheese, Carrefour pasta... There's a real craze among manufacturers and consumers," Mr. Neri emphasizes.
Previously reserved for top athletes and specialist brands, high-protein diets have become widely popular.
"There is a very positive image of proteins, which are associated with power, muscles, vitality, and we think that it's good for our health," François Mariotti, a professor of nutrition at Agro-Paris Tech, explained to AFP.
However, the promise of protein intake sold by these products is not really of interest, health professionals put into perspective.
"In France, there are no protein deficiencies. Almost the entire population is already well above the recommended intake of between 0.8 and 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight," explains dietician Violette Babocsay.
-“Deceptive” Marketing-
By relying on a well-established marketing strategy around sport, nutrition and health, these products attract, in addition to athletes, people who are concerned about their diet, by playing on the idea that proteins help you lose weight.
But beware of false promises. While protein can help increase muscle mass, it cannot claim to "promote satiety" or "help control feelings of hunger," the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has ruled.
"And even for athletes, there is a maximum beyond which it is not useful to go, it is not 'the more I eat, the better'," specifies Ms. Babocsay.
The dietitian also criticizes the "almost misleading" marketing of certain protein-enriched versions - the composition of which is often close to their classic version.
To make their products higher in protein, manufacturers can either add a protein source or simply reduce the fat content, which mechanically increases the proportion of protein.
"For the protein version of Babybel cheese, there's no added protein, but less fat," the professional illustrates, for example. "You really have to look at the nutritional values to realize that the protein difference between the two versions is ultimately very limited."
"The composition of the protein version is almost identical to the light version, with black packaging on one side and blue on the other," she says ironically.
-More expensive products-
Also, contrary to popular belief, the term "protein" does not necessarily mean that the product is healthier. On the contrary, their composition is sometimes even less good and many contain more sugar, additives or sweeteners...
Professor Mariotti thus deplores "the distortion of nutritional messages" used to promote products that are "bad for health."
Especially since these products are also more expensive: "For classic soy milk, we'll be looking at 1.85 euros and 4 grams of protein per 100 ml, compared to almost 3 euros and only 5 grams of protein in a protein version," warns Violette Babocsay.
The observation is even more striking in the case of yogurts, where products already rich in protein such as petit-suisse cost 3.5 euros per kilo, compared to 8 euros for a specialist brand.
Thus, foods that emphasize their protein content may be much less so than others that are naturally protein-rich - such as turkey breast - without their packaging mentioning it.
"Many products, even simple plain sandwich breads, can claim to be a 'source of protein' according to regulations. This is simply a marketing ploy that has little real value," illustrates Elsa Abdoun, a journalist at Que Choisir magazine.
Claiming health benefits based on protein content is therefore "completely inappropriate," laments Professor Mariotti.
"It creates a lot of cacophony, and it's starting to become a real problem," he points out.
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