Ozempic users will soon get their own heat-and-eat meals

• A new line of frozen foods will cater to users of weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.
• Nestlé's Vital Pursuit brand will include sandwiches and bowls.

Frozen meals are one of the latest ways that big consumer brands are trying to cater to users of weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy.

Food giant Nestlé will start selling 12 items under its new Vital Pursuit brand by the fourth quarter of this year, the company said Tuesday. The lineup is designed for GLP-1 weight loss medication users and will include items like sandwich melts and grain bowls with chicken.

Each item will have a suggested retail price of $4.99 or less, Nestlé said, though prices can vary by store.

The meals are "portion-aligned to a weight loss medication user's appetite" and contain high amounts of fiber, protein, and essential nutrients, Nestlé said. They're also "well-suited to support a balanced diet for anyone on a weight management journey," the company said.

"As the use of medications to support weight loss continues to rise, we see an opportunity to serve those consumers," Nestlé North America CEO Steve Presley said in a statement announcing the meals.

GLP-1 drugs have become more popular over the past year. According to the American Pharmacists Association, about one in 60 adults got a prescription for one in 2023.

Vital Pursuit shows how the food industry is adapting to the rise of GLP-1 drugs. Last year, some industry analysts questioned what major food makers would do if the drugs became widespread. Semaglutide, the generic name for drugs like Ozempic, works by reducing users' appetite, an effect that the analysts said would hurt sales of packaged foods and snacks.

However, the smaller portion sizes of Nestlé's new line show one way forward for the companies.

"Let's say they go to smaller portions, then we evolve the innovations, and we design smaller portions," Conagra CEO Sean Connolly said in response to a question about the drugs during an earnings call last fall.

Nestlé is just the latest consumer brand to try to cash in on the popularity of GLP-1 drugs.

Online pharmacy Hims & Hers said Monday that it would start selling its own version of Semaglutide for as little as $200 a month. That price would undercut other forms of the weight loss drug.

Costco also unveiled a program that allows customers to get a prescription for a GLP-1 drug and a consultation on how to use it earlier this year.