Cargill's Aysegul Ozcan: Nutrition needs to become effortless

Cargill's Aysegul Ozcan believes healthier food will only succeed when nutrition becomes something consumers hardly have to think about

The food industry has never had more tools to improve nutrition. Protein can be increased, sugar reduced, sodium lowered and fiber added, often without changing how a product is made. From a scientific perspective, many of the industry's biggest formulation challenges have already been solved. The commercial challenge is proving much harder.

People may say they want healthier food, but they still buy with their senses, their routines and their wallets. Nutrition influences those decisions, yet it competes with taste, convenience and affordability every time someone fills a shopping basket. Products that ask consumers to compromise rarely become everyday purchases.

"Innovation is no longer a limiting factor – the challenge is making nutrition solutions fit seamlessly into consumers' daily lives," states Aysegul Ozcan, Enhanced Nutrition Commercial Marketing Director at Cargill.

That assessment reflects the findings of the company's TrendTracker 2025 research. Eighty-two percent of respondents describe wellness as a top or very important priority, yet taste remains the strongest driver of food and beverage purchases. Cost also continues to shape buying decisions, with 58% saying they are extremely or very concerned about access to affordable, nutritious food.

Innovation is no longer a limiting factor – the challenge is making nutrition solutions fit seamlessly into consumers' daily lives

For product developers, that changes the brief. Better nutrition is no longer enough on its own. It has to arrive without asking consumers to change how they eat.

"Successful nutrition innovation increasingly focuses on helping consumers achieve their goals without sacrificing enjoyment," Ozcan says. "At Cargill, much of our innovation work centers on helping customers improve nutritional profiles through solutions that can add fiber, reduce sugar, lower sodium and improve fat profiles while maintaining the taste and sensory experience consumers expect."

More than one box to tick

Health is only one part of the purchasing decision. Consumers expect products to taste good, fit their budget, suit busy lifestyles and support their health at the same time. Success depends on delivering all of those benefits together rather than excelling in just one.

"Taste remains the foundation," Ozcan says. "Our TrendTracker data shows 78% of consumers consider taste extremely or very important when making food and beverage choices, while affordability concerns remain elevated and 58% of consumers are extremely or very concerned about access to affordable, nutritious food."

That leaves manufacturers with a more demanding formulation challenge than simply reducing sugar or adding protein. Nutritional improvements mean little if the product no longer earns a place in someone's weekly shop.

"What we're increasingly seeing is consumers looking for products that deliver multiple benefits at once," she says. "They want foods that taste good, fit their budget, support their health goals and work within busy lifestyles."

The objective has changed. Instead of persuading people to adopt healthier diets, companies are improving the foods people already choose.

What we're increasingly seeing is consumers looking for products that deliver multiple benefits at once. They want foods that taste good, fit their budget, support their health goals and work within busy lifestyles

Every eating occasion has to deliver more

Eating habits are changing alongside expectations.

Smaller meals, busier schedules and growing interest in weight management mean every eating occasion carries more nutritional responsibility than it once did. If people are eating less, they expect each meal or snack to contribute more.

"Nutrient density is about helping consumers get more nutritional value from the foods they already eat," Ozcan says. "In practice, that means delivering meaningful amounts of nutrients such as protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals within realistic eating occasions."

Protein remains one of the most sought-after nutritional attributes, but it is no longer the whole story. TrendTracker found that 71% of people use vitamins, minerals or supplements at least once a week, while 43% are interested in functional foods and beverages.

"We're seeing this become increasingly relevant because consumers are becoming more intentional about their food choices," Ozcan says.

Cargill demonstrated that thinking at Vitafoods Europe with two nutrient-dense concept products. VitalBite combines protein with vitamins and minerals in a compact snack, while VitalFuel pairs protein and fiber with Eversweet stevia sweetener - developed by Avansya, a joint venture between dsm-firmenich and Cargill – and Gerkens Sweety cocoa powder in a portion-controlled cocoa beverage.

The concepts are designed around familiar eating occasions rather than entirely new ones. The emphasis is on making existing habits nutritionally stronger, not replacing them.

Accessibility cannot be an afterthought

Nutrition has little impact if healthier products remain out of reach. "The challenge isn't simply creating healthier products," Ozcan says. "It's creating products that are nutritious, affordable and widely available."

Billions of people around the world still cannot afford a healthy diet. Improving nutrition therefore depends as much on accessibility as scientific progress.

That is why reformulation has become such an important part of the conversation. "This is where reformulation can play an important role," she says. "Helping manufacturers reduce sugar, sodium and saturated fat, while increasing nutritional value in foods people already consume can have a broad population-level impact because it improves nutrition without requiring dramatic changes in consumer behavior."

Few people rebuild their diets overnight. Most improve them one shopping trip at a time. Reformulating everyday foods works with that reality instead of expecting consumers to change overnight.

Millions of small improvements

Breakthrough ingredients often attract the headlines, but public health is more likely to improve through countless smaller changes.

A little less sugar. A healthier oil. More fiber. Lower sodium. Individually, those adjustments can appear modest. Across thousands of products and millions of meals, their cumulative effect becomes far more meaningful.

TrendTracker found that 76% of people are trying to avoid sugar, half are limiting sodium and 41% are reducing saturated fat. Interest in protein remains high alongside those priorities.

We may realize we spent too much time focusing on individual nutrients and not enough time thinking about the overall food experience

Meeting those expectations requires manufacturers to balance several formulation objectives at once.

"Cargill works with customers to reduce sugar through sweetening solutions, support sodium reduction through specialty salts and potassium-based solutions, improve fat profiles through healthier oils, and help improve nutritional quality where appropriate," Ozcan says.

The next advances in nutrition may not always arrive through entirely new products. Often, they will come from making familiar ones incrementally better.

Looking beyond individual nutrients

Nutrition has a habit of becoming fixated on whichever nutrient dominates the headlines.

Fat has had its turn. So have carbohydrates and sugar. Today, protein commands much of the attention.

Ozcan believes the industry will eventually take a broader view.

"We may realize we spent too much time focusing on individual nutrients and not enough time thinking about the overall food experience," she says.

That perspective already appears to be taking shape. TrendTracker found that 70% of respondents believe healthspan is more important than simply extending lifespan. Energy, satiety, healthy aging and overall wellbeing are becoming part of the same conversation rather than separate health ambitions.

"The future of nutrition is likely to be less about maximizing a single nutrient and more about helping people access foods that are nutrient-dense, enjoyable, affordable and easy to incorporate into everyday life," Ozcan says.

Perhaps that is where nutrition has been heading all along. Consumers have never shopped for protein, fiber or sodium in isolation. They have always shopped for food. The companies that succeed over the next decade are likely to be those that make healthier choices feel less like healthier choices at all.

This is an extended version of an exclusive interview conducted for the nutrition edition of Protein Production Technology International. To receive the magazine free of charge, along with weekly news, exclusive interviews and technical analysis from across the future protein industry, subscribe here