Kefir Global Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the kefir market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period, and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global kefir market reached a value of nearly $2.36 billion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.85% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $2.36 billion in 2023 to $3.07 billion in 2028 at a rate of 5.41%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.93% from 2028 and reach $4.1 billion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from growing popularity of functional beverages, increased adoption of plant-based and vegan diets, rising prevalence of lactose intolerance and changing dietary patterns. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period include import or export restrictions.

Going forward, the increasing demand for the health and wellness industry, growing demand for e-commerce, rising disposable incomes per capita, growing health-conscious consumers and rising urbanization will drive the market. Factors that could hinder the growth of the kefir market in the future include high production costs.

The kefir market is segmented by type into milk kefir and water kefir. The milk kefir market was the largest segment of the kefir market segmented by type, accounting for 85.77% or $2.02 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the milk kefir segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the kefir market segmented by type, at a CAGR of 5.51% during 2023-2028.

The kefir market is segmented by form into organic and conventional. The conventional market was the largest segment of the kefir market segmented by form, accounting for 67.59% or $1.59 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the organic segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the kefir market segmented by form, at a CAGR of 6.21% during 2023-2028.

The kefir market is segmented by distribution channel into supermarkets/hypermarkets, convenience stores, specialist stores and other distribution channels. The supermarkets/hypermarkets market was the largest segment of the kefir market segmented by distribution channel, accounting for 51.90% or $1.22 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the other distribution channels segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the kefir market segmented by distribution channel, at a CAGR of 6.30% during 2023-2028.

The kefir market is segmented by source into animal milk, soy milk, coconut milk and other sources. The animal milk market was the largest segment of the kefir market segmented by source, accounting for 66.50% or $1.57 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the soy milk segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the kefir market segmented by source, at a CAGR of 6.58% during 2023-2028.

The kefir market is segmented by category into flavored kefir and non-flavored kefir. The flavored kefir market was the largest segment of the kefir market segmented by category, accounting for 60.8% or $1.43 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the non-flavored kefir segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the kefir market segmented by category, at a CAGR of 5.9% during 2023-2028.

Eastern Europe was the largest region in the kefir market, accounting for 64.86% or $1.53 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by Western Europe, Asia-Pacific and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the kefir market will be Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, where growth will be at CAGRs of 7.02% and 5.91% respectively. These will be followed by Eastern Europe and South America, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 5.43% and 5.18% respectively.

The global kefir market is fairly fragmented, with a large number of small players in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 12.39% of the total market in 2023. The market fairly fragmentation can be attributed to the presence of a large number of small players in different geographies. Lifeway Foods Inc. was the largest competitor with a 2.70% share of the market, followed by Emmi Group with 1.90%, Arla Foods amba with 1.59%, Trader Joe’s with 1.10%, Nestlé S.A. with 1.10%, Valio Ltd. with 1.05%, Danone S.A. with 0.87%, Kri Kri Milk Industry SA with 0.80%, Biotiful Gut Health with 0.69% and Bakoma Sp. z o. o. with 0.59%.

The top opportunities in the kefir market segmented by type will arise in the milk kefir segment, which will gain $623.16 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the kefir market segmented by form will arise in the conventional segment, which will gain $442.63 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the kefir market segmented by distribution channel will arise in the supermarkets/hypermarkets segment, which will gain $361.7 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the kefir market segmented by source will arise in the animal milk segment, which will gain $450.42 million of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the kefir market segmented by category will arise in the flavored kefir segment, which will gain $402.67 million of global annual sales by 2028. The kefir market size will gain the most in Russia at $333.47 million.

Market-trend-based strategies for the kefir market include research and development initiatives, focus on innovating new products such as solid kefir products, developing advanced probiotic beverages, adopting a strategic partnership approach, deploying a range of vegan oat-based kefir product lines and introduction of innovative organic low-fat kefirs.

Player-adopted strategies in the kefir market include focus on enhancing operational capabilities through the launch of new products.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the kefir companies to focus on research and development for product innovation, focus on diversifying product offerings with solid kefir variants, focus on innovating advanced probiotic beverages, focus on introducing organic low-fat kefirs, focus on expanding vegan oat-based kefir product lines, focus on milk kefir for market expansion, focus on organic kefir segment, focus on soy milk segment, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on strategic partnerships to expand distribution channels, provide competitively priced offerings, participate in trade shows and events, continue to use B2B promotions, focus on retail promotions and sampling campaigns and focus on supermarkets/hypermarkets for targeting end-users.