Indonesia’s relationship with food is as vibrant and diverse as its culture, but there’s more to it than meets the eye (or the plate). Did you know that while rice remains a staple, Indonesians are splurging more on packaged goods than ever before? Sweet treats are gaining popularity, but interestingly, fried food is taking a backseat—shaking up traditional consumption habits. ​ ​ 

However, there’s a flip side to this story. With diets increasingly leaning toward calorie-dense options and fruits falling behind on spending priorities, health challenges like diabetes and cardiovascular diseases are on the rise. But it’s not all gloom—this shift presents an exciting opportunity for players in the healthy F&B space! From nutrient-packed snacks to fortified foods that fill vitamin gaps, there’s a growing demand for options that nourish without compromising on convenience. ​ ​ 

Let’s dig into the numbers, trends, and opportunities shaping the plate (and health) of millions across the country. ​

1. Snapshot of the Indonesian food basket and how the food consumption spending looks like across key categories ​

Indonesia’s retail spending is heavily skewed toward food, which accounts for 50–55% of total expenditures, compared to 45–50% for non-food categories. Within food, groceries dominate the wallet share, followed by packaged food and beverages. 

Weekly per capita spending highlights key consumption trends: packaged F&B leads with IDR 73K, while staples like rice (IDR 18K) and fish (IDR 17K) also command significant shares. Vegetables and fruits see moderate spending.​

2. Double clicking, we see that packaged F&B is the largest (also the unhealthiest) subcategory in terms of dollar spend; fruits consumption remains low across​ ​ ​

Across all regions of Indonesia, there is far more growth in spending on fresh items (meat, fish, vegetables) compared to prepared/ packaged F&B. ​ ​

Packaged F&B remains a large opportunity in terms of dollar value. There is a massive whitespace on the healthy packaged F&B side as the current offerings are high on preservatives, calories, and trans fats. ​

3. Within packaged food, we notice that sweets and fried food (key drivers for major diseases in Indo) are showing divergent consumption patterns​

Diabetes is one of the major causes of death in Indonesia. If we look at the consumption trends in the last 5 years, the growth seen in sweet items remains one of the highest while nutritious items like fruits are seeing modest growth. On the positive side though – the consumption of fried items, a major cause of cardiovascular diseases is showing a minimal rise and even a major decline in some subcategories. ​

4. ….thus, there is a need as well as opportunity for healthier options within the packaged food subcategory​

While Indonesia does have the brands across various verticals within healthy snacking, the category is still extremely underpenetrated with most of the players yet to achieve meaningful scale (something that players in other SEA countries and India have achieved) ​

5.  And to compensate for gaps in vitamins and nutrients due to lower consumption of fruits, supplement can be the answer​

As per the Indonesia Ministry of Health, 90%+ Indonesians are not eating enough fruits and vegetables in the country, thus lacking the essential supply of vitamins and minerals in their body. This presents an opportunity for nutrient and supplement players to step up and help alleviate the gap in people’s diets in Indonesia. The market for vitamins and nutrients in Indonesia includes a range of products such as Vitamin A, B, C, D, E, and K, along with other minerals and compounds. Increasing health consciousness and factors such as sedentary lifestyles and changes in eating habits are driving the market growth for nutrients and supplements in Indonesia ​