Consumer obsession with protein continues to grow unabated with the International Food Information Council reporting that one in three Americans increased their consumption of the macronutrient in the past year and eight in 10 Americans prioritizing it during at least one eating occasion daily.

But as popular as protein is, IFIC’s 2025 Food & Health Survey reveals 80% of Americans don’t know how much they should consume daily, even though grams of protein per serving is the most frequently used piece of information about the nutrient on food packs. Likewise, their understanding of protein’s benefits is basic at best, and their grasp of which types or sources of protein best support their goals is even more limited.

Based on these insights, IFIC suggests consumers may need additional guidance to accurately identify and meet their protein needs based on their lifestyles and health goals – a challenge the experts at Danone are eagerly rising to meet.

In this episode of FoodNavigator-USA’s Soup-to-Nuts podcast, Danone experts gathered at an invitation-only event at the company’s research and innovation center in Colorado to share what they see for the future of protein, including helping consumers understand the importance of quality over quantity, the diverse benefits of dairy- and plant-based proteins and how the company is using cutting-edge science to create high-quality protein products and more sustainably meet the demands of a growing population.

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Quality over quantity

When most consumers think about the benefits of protein, they first think about muscle support, but as Danone Research & Innovation Senior Director of Nutritional Physiology Fellow Ardy Van Helvoort and Danone Chief Research & Development Officer Takoua Debeche explain protein is essential for much more than building bigger biceps.

“We all focus a lot on muscle,” and while about 2% of the protein in muscle turns over daily, “we need to realize that only 40% of the protein in our body is muscle,” Van Helvoort said.

For example, he explained, when people consume protein, it is digested and absorbed by enzymes, which are different types of proteins, and regulated by insulin, which again is a protein.

“The blood that you have is full of proteins with all kinds of different functions,” he added. “So, I think, we need to realize that protein is a really important building block for all kinds of systems that we have in our body.”

Debeche adds that consumers are ready for this level of detail, which she says is further supported by the health data many receive from wearable tech that tracks their bodies’ performance.

Just as advanced technology is helping consumers better understand their protein needs, it also is helping Danone better meet those needs by identifying how different protein sources work together to build complete nutrition solutions, as Whitney Evans, director of nutrition & scientific affairs at Danone North America, notes.

“One of the things that I am most excited about is the explosion and ability to use AI to understand what parts of protein unlock new functional benefit,” and the different roles of single amino acids as well as chains of amino acids that form peptides, which can be bioactive and have benefits that can’t be realized except through a whole protein, she said.

Advanced tech enhances function and flavor

Debeche adds Danone also is leveraging advanced technology to improve the palatability and digestibility of protein while ensuring it is high quality.

For example, she said, the company uses fermentation to improve the digestibility of plant-based and dairy proteins to ensure they have a complete amino acid profile. Likewise, it uses proteins in the form of enzymes to remove the lactose from some products to ease digestibility for consumers who have intolerances. And finally, she said, it uses microparticulated protein technology to create smaller size proteins that have a smoother, creamier texture rather than a gritty, powdery texture.

Evans adds Danone also marries high quality protein with taste profiles and formats consumers want to create products that meet different diverse needs across life stages.

The future of plant-based protein

With protein becoming an integral part of consumers’ everyday lives, Kallie Goodwin, who is the senior vice president of plant-based beverages at Danone North America, notes many people are looking for incremental protein across both animal and plant-based sources in different formats for different uses.

“Plant-based protein isn’t just for vegans anymore. We see consumers embracing a flexitarian lifestyle, which is really wanting to ground yourself in plant-based foods, but also still consuming animal products for important nutrients,” and that might vary based on occasion, Goodwin said. As such, she added, Danone offers a range products from different sources for different uses.

Consumers also increasingly are looking for more from their protein, including more nutrition, more flavor and more function, which plant-based options can check, explains Diego Rosso-Gonzales, Danone R&I director of plant based beverages and new technologies.

“There is a space for protein-plus. Plants inherently have fiber. They have nutrients. So there are added benefits” in addition to the protein, he said.

Goodwin calls out examples of “protein plus” in Danone’s portfolio that lean on plant-based ingredients, including Silk Protein Plus, Silk Kids beverages and yogurts that have protein plus probiotics.

Another positive for plant-based proteins, according to Rosso-Gonzales, is they deliver other functional benefits such as the ability to froth or offer the right balance of light and creamy for cereal.

Rosso-Gonzales adds that these myriad benefits are barely scratching the surface for the potential of plant-based proteins given the vast range of species available that have not yet been explored fully and which he sees as part of Danone’s future.

Protein as a problem-solver: Tackling health challenges

The myriad health benefits of protein are still being discovered – often through in-depth, highly technical research that can be difficult for consumers to understand, which is why Danone North America Director of Nutrition Amanda Blechman says the company is going the extra mile to uncover how protein may help manage health conditions and presenting that information to consumers in a responsible, understandable way.

For example, she noted that Danone worked with FDA to create a qualified health claim for yogurt to reduce the risk of type two diabetes – a rigorous process that makes a huge body of dense science more easily accessible to consumers through an easy claim.

She adds that rising interest in food as medicine is fueling research at Danone as it looks for ways to help health care professionals guide disease management through nutrition. Danone also is actively working to educate consumers and influencers and is even exploring how AI might help consumers navigate the link between nutrition and their health.

As we explained by experts at Danone, protein’s future isn’t just about getting more of it – it is about getting it right. This includes the right type of protein at the right time to best meet consumer goals, developing sufficient, accurate science to support health claims, and helping consumers understand it all – all of which Danone is addressing through its vast research, innovation and marketing efforts.