Weight loss medications have moved rapidly beyond niche status. Uptake and awareness continue to rise, and their impact on food, drink and eating out is no longer theoretical. For brands and operators, GLP-1s are already reshaping how consumers buy, eat and engage across occasions. 

This month marks the first output from our IGD Futures: GLP‑1 insight programme. Even at this early stage, the findings underline why GLP-1s represent one of the most complex and commercially significant behaviour shifts the industry has faced and why understanding it in greater depth is now essential. 

GLP-1s are no longer emerging 

Use of weight loss medications continues to accelerate. Around 6% of people now use them, almost double since last June. More importantly, visibility has increased. Access has widened, conversations are more open and knowing someone on a GLP‑1 is becoming normal. 

This matters because visibility drives familiarity. As treatment feels more achievable, the potential user base grows expanding both the scale and speed of impact on food and drink behaviours. 

Motivation matters and GLP-1 users are not one audience 

One of the strongest early insights from the programme is why people start GLP-1s. We see three distinct motivational mindsets: 

• Those driven by long term health needs. 

• Those turning to GLP-1s as a last resort after trying other weight‑loss methods. 

• Those using them as a short‑term fix, often linked to a specific social or event‑driven goal. 

These motivations shape willingness to change diet, engagement with nutrition, and behaviour once medication stops. As a result, GLP-1 users do not behave in one consistent way, nor do they behave consistently over time. 

Importantly, GLP-1 use is not static. Users are already cycling off medication, considering restarting, or worrying about what comes next. Behaviour, needs and spend shift significantly across stages. 

This is where the commercial opportunity sits. Treating GLP-1 users as a single audience, risks missing growth. Understanding which users, at which stage of their journey, have unmet needs is key to identifying where value really lies. 

GLP‑1s are changing how people eat not just how much 

The impact of GLP‑1s is not simply about eating less, but about eating differently. Food choices are becoming more functional and less driven by appetite or emotion.  

These shifts extend beyond the home. Eating out and on the go occasions are also being rethought. Many GLP‑1 users are visiting restaurants, pubs and coffee shops less frequently, or adapting their behaviour either by skipping courses, rethinking alcohol, or sharing meals. 

For brands and suppliers, this creates both risk and opportunity. Occasions may shrink, but needs become more specific, opening up opportunities around menu design, format, portioning and cues that align with changing motivations. 

Turning disruption into direction 

Together, these shifts underline why GLP-1s represent one of the most complex and commercially significant behaviour changes facing the food and drink industry. Impact varies by motivation, by stage of use and by occasion and understanding where behaviours change is critical to identifying where growth sits. 

IGD’s GLP-1 programme is designed to support this deeper understanding, connecting motivation, behaviour, spend and lifecycle dynamics to help brands and operators with their strategic planning.