In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, sales of vitamin C have increased substantially because the general public believes that vitamin C can boost immunity and improve immune health. So, will this increase in sales continue in 2021? What will happen to the vitamin C market in 2021?

With the substantial growth of the immune health care market in 2020, the demand for vitamin C has also soared. "The substantial increase in vitamin C consumption is mainly due to COVID-19." said Tobe Cohen, chief growth officer of Pharmavite.

He added: "So far, the vitamin C market has grown by nearly 70%, and this exaggerated change is a response to the COVID-19 pandemic."

In fact, consumers have a high demand for anything related to vitamin C. In an online event hosted by Nutritional Outlook on September 24, the spokesperson and vice president of IRI, Joan Driggs, reported: "Anything that contains vitamin C, including refrigerated juices and fruits themselves, is very popular."

Many people who did not take supplements before started taking vitamin C during the pandemic. "From many perspectives, vitamin C is the channel for consumers to enter the field of VMS (vitamins, minerals, and supplements). They often only focus on the immune support function of vitamin C because they do not realize that it can also support other aspects. "Pharmavite's Cohen said.

Existing supplement users have also increased their appetite for vitamin C. The survey found that vitamin C is the most popular immune support supplement among consumers, and 61% of consumers taking immune health supplements take vitamin C.

Both newcomers and existing supplement users are vital to the vitamin C market. Cohen of Pharmavite Company discussed these two types of consumers: "Consumers in the vitamin C field can well reveal the two main types of consumers in the VMS field.

There are also consumers who are proficient in this, and want to plan their own vitamin and supplement programs. Such consumers tend to be more hands-on and understand their personal needs. When it comes to immune support, they may look for a comprehensive solution, not just vitamin C, but also other nutrients that support immunity, such as vitamins A, E, D, and zinc. "

He pointed out: "It is valuable to develop different types of products to meet the different needs of consumers in the health journey." He said, fortunately, vitamin C is a "versatile" ingredient. It is water-soluble and suitable for a variety of dosage forms, which allows product manufacturers to cater to the various preferences of consumers, not only tablets, but also gums, powders and even chewable tablets.

In terms of the size of the global vitamin C market, the United States leads in market share, followed by China, and then Japan, Canada, and Europe. Like many dietary supplement raw materials in 2020, vitamin C is facing supply chain bottlenecks caused by obstacles such as global blockade, limited transportation options, and increased transportation costs. Due to the surge in demand for vitamin C in 2020, in addition to China, other countries have also begun to participate in production, mainly India and Indonesia. European countries are also producing more vitamin C—especially the United Kingdom. Therefore, these factors have helped alleviate some supply shortages.