LONDON ¨C Danone¡¯s lawsuit against Chobani over protein claims makes it clear the French dairy company sees its U.S. rival as a threat in one of the few food groups seeing a boost from weight-loss drug users both during and after they get their GLP-1 fix: yogurt.
Danone, which has struggled to meet growing consumer demand ?for high-protein products, sued Chobani in a Manhattan federal court on Monday, accusing it of inflating protein claims on labels on multiple-serving ?tubs of ?Chobani 20G Protein, which it calls a direct rival to its Oikos Pro in the ultra-high-protein yogurt ?category. The battle for protein supremacy is particularly important in the United States, where growing numbers of GLP-1 weight-loss drug users are seeking out protein-heavy products to combat muscle wastage. A consumer study by Boston Consulting Group showed that unlike products such as ?protein shakes, yogurt is among a handful of foods that see a more permanent boost from weight-loss drugs.
¡°High-protein foods like yogurt or ... meat seem to ?increase in frequency during and even more after stopping GLP-1s,¡± Lauren Taylor, managing director and senior partner at BCG, said.
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