Adults Favor Snacks Over Meals: Report

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Six in 10 adults worldwide prefer to eat many small meals throughout the day as opposed to a few larger ones, according to a new report. And 7 in 10 millennials turn to snacks instead of meals.

Mondelez International worked with consumer polling specialist The Harris Poll to conduct its 2019 State of Snacking report. Thousands of consumers across 12 countries participated.

“We embrace the fact that snacking habits around the world are as diverse as the consumers who enjoy them,” said Dirk Van de Put, chairman and CEO of Mondelez International. “However people snack, they should not have to choose between snacking and eating right, or to worry about the impact their choices have on the world and their communities. That’s why we’re committed to empowering people to snack right.”

Here are some highlights from the report …  

For more than 8 in 10 people, convenience and quality are among the top factors influencing snack choice, according to the report.

Eighty percent of consumers are looking for healthy, balanced bites, while 71% of adults said snacking helps them control their hunger and manage calories throughout the day.

“As the snacking market continues to grow globally, we’re living our purpose to empower people to snack right by constantly learning about the many different ways consumers around the world are snacking and evolving their relationship with food,” Van de Put said.  

While consumers are looking for healthy snacks, they also want options. The report showed that 80% of adults worldwide acknowledge the need for a balance of healthy and indulgent snacks.

Seventy-seven percent of consumers agree there is a time and place for both a healthy and an indulgent snack.

Three in 4 adults said snacking gives them an “essential break in their busy days,” according to the report.

Snacking motivations included:

• 78% to pamper/spoil/reward myself.
• 78% for a sense of comfort.
• 76% to boost my mind.
• 75% to find quiet moments to myself.
• 74% to stay alert/energized.
• 73% to relax and calm down.
• 72% to take care of my body and nutritional needs.

Snacking reminds people of home, 71% of participants said. Most adults try to share their favorite childhood snacks with others.

More than 80% of parents use snack time as a small way to connect with their children, the report said.

The Harris Poll conducted the survey online Sept. 16-27, 2019, with 6,068 adults participating.

Deerfield, Ill.-based Mondelez International is one of the world’s largest snack companies, with 2018 net revenues of about $26 billion. Its brands include Oreo, BelVita, Sour Patch Kids and Trident gum. It acquired a majority interest in refrigerated nutrition-bar company Perfect Snacks in July. 

In September 2018, the company revealed its new long-term strategy to generate sustainable shareholder value, including multiple initiatives to bolster its snacking division. Through its new tagline, “Snacking Made Right,” Mondelez says it aims to provide “the right snack, for the right moment, made the right way.”