Loyalty Meets Health & Wellness: Driving Healthier Choices in Grocery Retail

Health and wellness claims have been a part of the grocery shopping experience since the dawn of the supermarket, but they’re now taking on a new significance. Just as we’ve seen with sustainability—which we explored in sustainable spending and sustainable loyalty—shoppers increasingly prioritize health and wellness products. Even more compelling for grocery retailers, consumers are often willing to pay a premium for these products, making health & wellness a key area to incorporate into their merchandising, promotional, and loyalty strategies.

While healthy product labels and attributes are now common on grocery store shelves, loyalty programs remain an overlooked opportunity to leverage these trends. Grocery retailers can bridge this gap by integrating health-focused offers and incentives to drive greater engagement and boost sales.

This opportunity was one of the key findings in our Green Loyalty study of 1,096 U.S. and Canadian adults, which examined their views and preferences on sustainability, health & wellness in the context of grocery shopping, purchasing decisions, and loyalty behaviors. By recognizing the nature and scope of the growing demand for healthier choices and thoughtfully integrating health & wellness incentives into their loyalty programs in relevant and meaningful ways, retailers can capitalize on this trend to drive incremental sales and improve customer lifetime value.

Consumers Want To Make Healthier Choices–And Are Willing To Pay For It

Our survey revealed that 51% of consumers consider health & wellness extremely or very important in their grocery purchasing decisions. This aligns with findings from NIQ, which show consumers’ increasing prioritization of healthier and "cleaner" choices at the grocery store. For instance, 30% of shoppers want low-sugar options when buying food and beverage products, up from 27% in 2023. Plant-based consumption is also climbing, with vegan product sales increasing 9% year-over-year.

Consumers’ willingness to pay more underscores their priority on health & wellness. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of respondents in our survey said they would pay extra for products with attributes like organic, natural, low-fat, or low-sugar compared to similar items without those claims. Additionally, 33% of U.S. and Canadian shoppers report they "always" or "usually" opt for the healthier product, even when a less healthy option is available at a lower price.

Shoppers also expect brands and retailers to support them in making these decisions. According to a Kantar study of global wellness behaviors, 56% of U.S. shoppers believe brands should actively promote healthier lifestyles.

The Missed Link Between Health & Wellness and Loyalty Programs

Despite strong demand for healthier products and expectations for retail brands to make them more accessible, health & wellness remains an overlooked opportunity in most retail loyalty programs. Even though loyalty programs can make healthier choices more affordable for grocery shoppers through direct incentives or points-based discounting, eliminating one of consumers' most-cited challenges to making more health-conscious decisions at the shelf is critical. According to the same Kantar report, the high price of nutritious food frustrates many shoppers, with 73% of French and 76% of Indonesian consumers citing this as a significant challenge.

Our survey further highlights this gap: 51% of respondents indicated their loyalty programs lack health & wellness incentives, and only 10% reported that most or all of their programs include these rewards. This disconnect between consumer expectations and current loyalty offerings underscores a clear opportunity for retailers to refine and align their strategies and better cater to evolving shopper preferences.

Integrating health & wellness incentives into loyalty programs could also boost brand perception. Our survey data shows that 66% of consumers would view a brand more positively if it offered health & wellness rewards. Regional differences add nuance: 31% of Canadian shoppers, compared to 22% in the U.S., said these incentives would improve their opinion of a brand, suggesting that the success of such programs may vary by market and geography and require tailored approaches.

Aligning Loyalty Programs with the Health & Wellness Movement

One of the most influential and direct ways to integrate health & wellness into loyalty programs is by incentivizing healthier purchasing decisions. This influences immediate choices and shapes long-term behavior, creating lasting changes in consumer buying habits. However, the incentives must go beyond the appeal of being a healthier option; the value must be tangible, clear, and compelling enough to drive action.

For 64% of consumers, points bonuses or multipliers would encourage healthier purchases. Yet, a significant portion (33%) stressed that the perceived value of the incentive must be strong enough to motivate them, highlighting the enduring importance of value in consumer decision-making. Interestingly, 25% of shoppers said they would switch products if convinced of the product’s health benefits, underscoring the need for brands to provide clear and credible evidence.

Regional differences also stand out: 40% of Canadians and 33% of Americans reported that they always or usually choose healthier options, suggesting opportunities for targeted strategies aligned with those market variances.

Beyond direct incentives, gamification offers grocers another way to engage consumers in health & wellness. Programs like Loblaw’s PC Health are an excellent example of this. Alongside access to healthcare resources, Loblaw encourages customers to earn PC Optimum points by building healthy habits, completing personalized programs, and participating in special offers—making the journey to better health both rewarding and interactive.

While only 22% of consumers report participating in gamified health initiatives through loyalty programs, this only reinforces the opportunity for retailers. Retailers introducing health-focused game options within their loyalty programs can gain an early-mover advantage, creating a new avenue for engagement and interaction. These programs can also target critical demographics more likely to participate, such as Gen Z—35% say they have played a health and wellness game through a retail loyalty program, households with children (35%), and health enthusiasts (34%).

Beyond gamification, loyalty programs can guide healthier choices through non-promotional content. Features like menu planning tools, which help consumers select recipes and build shopping lists with more nutritious items, offer a practical way to add value while encouraging healthier purchasing decisions.

Health & Wellness and Loyalty: A Perfect Pairing

Our survey findings make it clear: consumers want to make healthier choices at the grocery store, and retailers that simplify or reduce the cost of those decisions through loyalty programs stand to gain. Whether through direct incentives for healthier products or gamified rewards for health-focused behaviors, loyalty programs are a powerful tool for shaping shoppers’ health and wellness habits. By leveraging this connection, retailers can drive greater engagement, revenue, and customer lifetime value—delivering healthy outcomes for shoppers and their bottom lines.

Download our North American survey on sustainability, health & wellness, and loyalty behaviors, or contact us to explore how Eagle Eye can help your grocery brand integrate health & wellness into your loyalty strategy.