The Vitamin Shoppe today announced the launch of a new product category—Protein Pantry. Over the past few months, The Vitamin Shoppe has introduced new, protein-packed foods such as pancake mixes, nut butters and spreads, powdered peanut butter and more. The Vitamin Shoppe now boasts a unique, specially curated assortment of protein-infused foods. The new Protein Pantry assortment is available at approximately 700 Vitamin Shoppe locations across the country and online at VitaminShoppe.com.

Doug Jones, senior vice president of merchandising for The Vitamin Shoppe shared, "We are seeing a clear trend in our target customers looking for broader solutions to bring more protein into their diet in ways beyond bars and powders. Protein is no longer a focus for just performance athletes, our core Vitamin Shoppe customer is deeply focused on nutritional fortification to help achieve their goals of living a healthy, active lifestyle."

According to the 2015 edition of Nutrition Business Journal (NBJ), in 2014, within the U.S. nutrition industry, the functional foods category grew 7.8 percent and the natural and organic foods category grew an even faster 12.7 percent, demonstrating demand and growth for new products in these categories. NBJ is projecting similar growth trends for the next five years.

Brian Tanzer, MS, CNS, nutritionist for The Vitamin Shoppe, explains that, "Ensuring adequate protein intake can be one important step in building a well-rounded fitness routine. If looking to increase lean muscle mass, protein plays a vital role in the growth and repair of lean muscle tissue when combined with resistance training. In addition to common food sources, supplementing protein intake with on-the-go foods can be a convenient way to meet daily nutrition needs and achieve wellness goals."

The Vitamin Shoppe's Protein Pantry offers an assortment of foods from some new vendor partners, including Buff Bake, D's Naturals, Mancakes, P28 Foods and more. The complete assortment features approximately 40 products.