Although consumers might have classified coconut water as an “exotic” beverage in the past, it’s quickly becoming more mainstream. In fact, the number of global coconut water launches has increased more than 540 percent in the last five years, according to Chicago-based market research firm Mintel. In 2013 alone, the number of coconut waters released in the United States increased 92 percent from 2012, according to Innova Market Insights’ Innova Database.
North America dominated the market with 35 percent of the launch activity in 2012, but Europe followed closely behind with 34 percent of new coconut water launches, Mintel reports. Coconut water releases in both of these areas demonstrated double-digit growth compared with 2008. The Asia-Pacific region accounted for 14 percent of launches, which is a 5 percentage point increase from 2008, the market research firm adds. However, Latin America saw a significant decline in new coconut water introductions, with 16 percent of new coconut water product launches in 2012 compared with 61 percent in 2008, it states.