Tetra Pak targets China's protein RTD market with new solutions

As Chinese consumers grow increasingly health-conscious, demand for high-protein functional beverages is surging, prompting the global food packaging and processing solutions company Tetra Pak to double down on the category's potential in China with its customized end-to-end solution ready for local brands.

At the recent FBIF 2025 Food and Beverage Innovation Forum, Tetra Pak highlighted its ambitions in the ready-to-drink (RTD) protein segment, a fast-growing space fueled by the expansion of fitness culture beyond gyms to the broader public.

The company showcased its range of end-to-end solutions for high-protein beverages, designed to help local brands accelerate product development and commercialization.

"Protein has become one of the top functional claims in the food and beverage industry," Jordi Torres, vice president of Marketing, Tetra Pak Greater China, said. "In China, 61 percent of consumers cite protein as the most interesting health-related claim to them".

China's sports nutrition market is estimated to be worth around 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion), or 7.5 billion yuan, with over 500 million people engaging in regular exercise and showing growing interest in nutrition, according to the data shared by Tetra Pak. The gym industry alone counts about 70 million members—many of whom are willing to pay more for products that enhance their health.

To help food and beverage brands capture this rising demand, Tetra Pak introduced its InFleX Innovation and Incubation Workshop—a zero-asset investment platform that provides one-stop product development support, from R&D to market testing.

"The workshop also provides the flexibility from the processing technology to the packaging format without the brand owner having to invest in the very beginning," said Torres. "It helps the brand produce industrialized products with minimum risk".

The highlight of the model is allowing companies to industrialize new RTD products with access to Tetra Pak's co-packing network, which is already available from beverage enterprises that acquired Tetra Pak's processing and packaging facilities.

The company's new Industrial Protein Mixer, for instance, is designed to optimize the blending of complex ingredients while preserving protein quality by eliminating foam generation and minimizing raw material waste—critical factors for cost control and nutritional efficacy.

"Protein is an ingredient that needs to be handled gently," Torres said. "With our integrated technologies and InFleX, we enable our partners to test and scale protein-based drinks efficiently, helping them reduce waste and bring high-quality products to market faster."