Whey Protein Shortage and Price Increases
Published in Bodybuilding Supplements, Bodybuilding NutritionMany of you who buy protein supplements will have had a shock while doing your supplement shopping in recent weeks - a big increase in prices! As an example, Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey which previously had an RRP of £39.99 has shot up to £47.99 - meaning typically the online price has gone from £31.99 to £38.39 - a massive 20% increase.
So why is this happening? Basically there is a massive shortage of whey protein worldwide due to a number of factors.
Firstly, dont forget that the bodybuilding supplement markets is very small compared to the babyfood market - which is the #1 consumer of whey protein worldwide. What percentage of the population takes protein supplements? At most 10% perhaps and thats being generous, its probably more like 5 or less. What proportion of the population take milk formula as a baby? Well virtually all of us when we’re that age. So really the protein supplement market is dwarfed by the babyfood market, which pushes it well down the pecking order for whey.
So thats old news and nothing has changed there, but in recent times the demands on the whey protein industry have grown significantly. Previously not big users of whey, China are now becoming more westernised in their diet and are buying up huge supplies. Similar buying patterns are occurring with the Middle East. Add to this a drought in one of the biggest whey producing countries, Australia, meaning decreased whey protein output and you have a real bottle-neck situation. Increased demand meets decreased availability. To cap it all off, constantly rising fuel costs mean its more expensive than ever to import raw materials like whey also - so the end result is that there is less whey to around and its now massively more expensive for supplement manufacturers to buy and use in their products.
What all this means to you, the consumer, is unavoidable increased purchase prices. And the really bad news, is they may not be done yet. There’s word that more increases could be on the way, so if you find a good deal now then stock up.