This isn’t Groundhog Day and you are not Bill Murray. You’ve seen this headline before, but I swear today is a new day. Your alarm clock indeed went off at the same time, but the date on the top of your morning CSP Daily News is different.
I’m not here to tell you, once again, that snacking is the new black. I won’t waste my time filling you in on this valuable new meal occasion. Frankly, we’ve all been there and done that. And by “all” I mean the media, consultants, your grandma …
But if you really take the time to look closely, each report is slightly different. Each research company—be it IRI or Mintel, The Atlantic or Bloomberg—has something different to say. So who’s right? Who’s wrong? Certainly, Grandma’s not wrong—there’s nothing ever wrong with warm cookies and milk.
Take the healthy-indulgent dichotomy. CivicScience, a Pittsburgh-based research firm, recently reported that while the snacking occasion is indeed alive and well, snackers aren’t necessarily snacking on healthier items. The belief that people who snack throughout the day are looking for healthier options might not actually be true, according to CivicScience, and that cookie in your hand right now is vastly preferred among consumers to a bag of baby carrots.
This shouldn’t be a surprise; indulgent snacks have had a place on c-store shelves almost as long as there’s been gas to pump and milk to sell. But just as CivicScience tells us that consumers want to snack indulgently, NPD Group tells us they want something that will do their bodies some good. According to an NPD study, consumption of better-for-you snacks is up 14% since 2006.
So I ask again: What is snack myth, and what is snack fact? Let me head you off here: I don’t know. The disparate answers are not a reflection of right or wrong resources, but rather a diverse consumer base with very segmented needs—all making for a broad spectrum of data points and theories.
So sit back, grab your carrot stick or cake and let’s have a look at some of the latest studies surrounding the snack opportunity. Maybe we can figure it out together.
Report: Snacking Motivations and Attitudes
Firm: Mintel (mintel.com)
The Gist: At least there’s one thing we can all agree on: Snacking is universal. But millennials are drawn more to organic snacks and products with added nutrition including protein and vitamins—that is, if they can afford it.
Fun Supporting Fact: Whole Foods sees a lot of opportunity in millennials, so it has given them their own store. The new 365 by Whole Foods Market will stock the store’s 365 brand, as well as national names. “They’ve identified millennial shoppers, younger shoppers who are very particular about what they eat, but also tough about what they can spend on food,” said co-CEO Walter Robb in an interview with The Associated Press. Can you take advantage of this opportunity to add quality better-for-you products at a better-for-millennials price point?
* Base: 1,888 Internet users ages 18 and older who snack
** Base: 702 Internet users ages 18 and older who snack and are parents
Source: Lightspeed GMI/Mintel
CONTINUED: Who’s Eating What?
Report: The Future of Eating: Who's Eating What in 2018?
Firm: The NPD Group (npd.com)
The Gist: Consumption of better-for-you snacks such as fruits, breakfast/sports bars and yogurt is up 14% since 2006, and it’s forecasted to grow faster than both the savory- and sweet-snack categories. Who’s leading this charge? You guessed it: millennials.
Fun Supporting Fact: There is such a thing as a beef jerky store on wheels. “The Experience” is a mobile Beef Jerky Outlet store that will bring the Seymour, Tenn.-based Beef Jerky Outlet experience out of the store and onto the streets, according to the company. And they’re looking for franchisees. It’s a nobrainer—an ice-cream truck for big kids.
Source: The NPD Group
CONTINUED: ‘Meat Straws’ & ‘Snackwaves’
Report: State of the Snack Food Industry 2015
Firm: IRI (iriworldwide.com)
The Gist: All snacks, all the time. All categories are up—nuts, snack bars, ice cream, cookies, yogurt, cheese—all of them. Up, up, up. This is due in part to a boost in consumer confidence across the board, as well as more innovative offerings.
Fun Supporting Fact: A product called “meat straws” made The Wall Street Journal in May. Google it. If people are willing to sip their beverages out of a straw fashioned from bacon, they’ll snack on anything. Well, specifically, most people will eat bacon.
Source: IRI; * Percent change from a year ago
Report: Healthy Snacking and Multi-Snacking: A Food Industry Marketing Challenge?
Firm: CivicScience Inc. (blog.civicscience.com)
The Gist: People of all ages love snacks, and many of them admit they regularly eat sweet or indulgent snacks. Fifty-one percent of snackers snack more than once a day, and more than anything, these folks are after the sweet stuff.
Fun Supporting Fact: Did you know it’s cool to eat snacks? Like, Katy Perry cool? There’s a new meme out there and it’s super salty. “Snackwave,” a term coined online last year, refers to me—and all the girls like me—who love endless salad and breadsticks. When Katy Perry dressed up like a pizza? Snackwave. When a young lady brags on Twitter about the roller dogs she ate for lunch? Snackwave. It’s the women’s snack liberation, and these ladies could be your next greatest customers.
Source: CivicScience Inc.
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