We typically don’t think of cereal, ice cream, breakfast pastries and popcorn as high-protein snacks, but a new category of protein-enrich foods is challenging that idea.
The latest entrant to the high-protein snack food category is Khloud Protein Popcorn from reality TV star Khloe Kardashian, which contains 7 grams of protein per serving. The protein comes from a blend of milk proteins which are ground into a dust and seasoned on the popcorn, the latest instance of what experts are calling the “proteinification” of typically low-protein foodstuffs.
Consumers are eating up — literally. According to a new survey study conducted by purchase data platform Attain, a majority (53 percent) of consumers have changed their diets over the past year to include more protein, and 58 percent have bought food items specifically because they had added protein.
The trend stems from the rise of wellness craze around increasing protein intake. For many years, eating lots of protein was the sole province of musclehead gym bros. But the expansion of wellness culture, which has more women engaging in resistance training, and the popularity of high-protein, low-carbohydrate diets such as keto has driven protein consumption to new heights. Indeed, most consumers (54 percent) associate eating more protein with being healthier.
“Protein has become the avocado toast of wellness content — especially in a post-Ozempic culture. The rise of GLP-1 weight loss meds triggered a hyper-focus on muscle retention and metabolism, so now ‘high protein’ signals health, discipline, and optimization,” Ariadna Jacob, founder of CreatorGenius, an A.I.-powered social media content studio, tells The Outcome. “That’s why suddenly every product has 15g of protein slapped on the label — because it sells.”
Milk consumption is also on the rise. Consumption of whole milk rose 3.2 percent in 2024 over the previous year, only the second time milk consumption has increased since the 1970s. Meat, too, is on the rise. Americans ate 7 percent more meat in 2024 than before the pandemic, and meat sales hit a record $104.6 billion.
Los Angeles-based nutritionist Lisa Schultz credits the protein craze to the rise of the weight loss industry. Weight loss drugs, such as Ozempic, are excellent at helping people lose weight, but some of that weight loss comes at the expense of muscle mass, making people look frail.
“That’s where the push for protein comes in,” Schultz says. “Because if someone loses weight too quickly without the right intake, they risk losing lean mass, not just fat,” Schultz says.
A curious aspect of the protein push is that it often means eating foods that are artificially enriched with protein, which goes against the other wellness trend to avoid highly-processed foods.
“Deli meat, bacon, and ultra-processed protein snacks are technically high in protein, but they’re also classified as carcinogenic, inflammatory, and disease-promoting,” Schultz adds. “So if you’re increasing protein, how you do it matters. And that’s rarely discussed.”
The protein craze calls to mind other fad diets, such as Atkin’s, South Beach, keto and now the carnivore diet, all of which all emphasize limiting carbs and eating sufficient protein. The protein push is more about protein consumption in and of itself, and the messaging has expanded to include women.
“Women are now a huge target for the fitness and supplement industry. That messaging used to be more male-focused (bulking, muscle gain), but it’s shifted to women under the umbrella of weight loss, toning, and aging ‘gracefully,’” Schultz says.
As with all diet crazes, there is an element of truth to high-protein advice — protein is a fundamental building block of our bodies and is especially important for building and maintaining muscle — but it’s unclear whether this obsession will continue or is part of a passing fad.
Ultramarathoner and outdoor adventure coach Lance Parker believes the protein phenomenon has staying power. “You could call the increase in higher protein products a fad, but as long as health is on the top of people's minds, and people continue to become more educated on the multitude of reasons why getting in there daily protein is so critical for improving their health, it's a fad that will stick around,” he says.
