As GLP-1 Drugs Change How People Eat, Drugmakers Collect and Snack Makers Feel the Squeeze

GLP-1 adoption is splitting the consumer and pharma tape: 11% of U.S. adults now use weight-loss drugs like Wegovy and Zepbound, and the money is flowing to the drugmakers while snack companies absorb the hit.

LLY and NVO sit on the winning side. Both are posting surging sales as adoption climbs.

The pressure lands on food. GLP-1 users cut grocery spending by 5-8%, with processed snacks taking the sharpest reduction. PEP and HSY are already reporting declining sales, putting the demand shift into their reported numbers rather than just forecasts.

Not every consumer name is bleeding. KO and MNST are holding up, with their low-calorie portfolios cited as the buffer. That sets up a clear divide inside consumer staples: beverage exposure to low-calorie products versus snack exposure to the categories users cut first.

MDLZ, a snack-heavy name, is flagged in this theme. Interpretation: its snack exposure puts it closer to the PEP/HSY side of the divide than the KO/MNST side, though the source gives no company-specific figures for it.

The 11% adoption rate is the key number. A 5-8% spending cut applied to a user base that size is a measurable drag, and further adoption growth would widen it.