ABBOTT Laboratories said on Wednesday (Jan 31) it has launched a new protein shake that would help adults looking to lose weight and maintain their muscle mass.

The healthcare company said the protein shake is first among the range of products lined up to be launched under its new brand, called Protality.

The move comes as part of Abbott’s strategy to capitalise on the surge in demand for new weight-loss drugs from the GLP-1 class.

Abbott CEO Robert Ford had earlier said that the company’s nutrition business is planning to launch a product that would help prevent people from losing muscle mass when on GLP-1 weight-loss drugs.

The GLP-1 medications like Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Ozempic and Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro and Zepbound have seen extraordinary demand over the last year.

The drug class is expected to generate annual sales of more than US$100 billion by the end of the decade, analysts said.

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Abbott intends to develop additional nutrition products and “conduct clinical research”, the company said. REUTERS