Trends & New Products from the NACS Show: Candy & Snacks

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ATLANTA -- The candy and snacks categories are reaching the next stage of evolution, with manufacturers developing more sophisticated flavors, packaging and sales opportunities in this latest wave of new products. Some of their innovations include:

• Multi-layered flavors--7-Layer Dip Combos from Mars, Burrito beef jerky from Jack Link’s, Tex-Mex from Marfood and Strawberry Milkshake Skittles from Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co., just to name a few--demonstrate manufacturers’ growing ability to recreate complex flavor profiles.
• Stand-up pouches, once considered too high of a ring for the c-store customer, have proven to be a surprise hit in the channel.
• Greek yogurt is coating everything from protein bars to baked sweets, granting a healthful glow to snacks.
• Getting back to the basics with products that offer “natural energy” through whole-food inclusions such as Kellogg’s Bear Naked line, and simple combinations like meat, cheese and nuts, as seen at Kraft.
• “Broadening the consumer base” is the catchphrase for categories like meat snacks that are attempting to stretch beyond their core customer with new proteins--chicken, bacon--and flavors.
• The seasonal occasion is stretching beyond chocolate into nonchocolate, gum and mints, with holidays and weather-based seasons (summer, fall) providing inspiration and prolonging the opportunity for impulse sales.
• Sriracha—that brilliantly red, Vietnamese hot sauce in the green-capped bottle with the rooster—is the flavor of the moment, found in meat snacks, chicken wings, condiments and more. 

Below are some of the new snack and candy highlights from the 2013 NACS Show.

At Mars, the M&M brand family is upsizing with Mega M&Ms--featuring three times more chocolate than regular M&Ms--and Birthday Cake M&Ms, which infuse a birthday-cake flavor into the milk chocolate. The Bites lineup in 2.83-ounce sharing size packages and 6.0-ounce stand-up pouches now includes 3 Musketeers, Milky Way Simply Caramel and Twix. And new seasonal items are taking shape--think plastic M&M characters in Santa Claus hats filled with M&Ms.

Hershey’s first new global brand, Landcaster caramel soft cremes, were the highlight of the booth. The company is also aggressively pursuing the hand-to-mouth trend with the latest addition to its Minis line: York Peppermint Patties.

Jack Link’s is focused on expanding the consumer base while appealing to the core consumer with more options in flavors and proteins. For example: new chicken jerky in gourmet, handcrafted flavors and a new sweet teriyaki flavor for the company’s turkey jerky.

Wrigley has added a new flavor to its 5 gum lineup: “Ascent,” which has a wintermint flavor. Also new, the Skittles Desserts line, launching this December, which includes raspberry sorbet, strawberry milkshake, key lime pie and blueberry tart varieties.

ConAgra is going big with sunflower seeds, introducing David Jumbo Seeds, which are larger and easier to crack open and packaged in re-sealable bags. Also new: Slim Jim bacon jerky, adding another protein option to the company’s meat-snack lineup.

PepsiCo branch Frito-Lay introduced new products to meet a trio of marketing and merchandising opportunities. The company identified the Morning Startup as a time to push fast breakfast products, such as its Mtn. Dew Kickstart and Quaker Real Medleys oatmeal, which now includes an apple walnut flavor. Fuel & Hydrate is the time for Aquafina FlavorSplash and new Cap’n Crunch Snack Mix and Quaker Chewy Big Dipps bars. And the Young & Hungry segment features line extensions of classic snacks, including Lay’s Cheesy Garlic Bread and Dorito’s Dinamite Chile Limon.

Kellogg has several new items on tap, running from wholesome to indulgent: Bear Naked energy bars, trail mix and granola, representing the “natural energy” trend. On that same theme, Kellogg’s Special K Nourish hot cereal and Kellogg’s To Go breakfast drinks for the time-crunched customer. And on the indulgent side, Krave Treat chocolate snack bars E.L. Fudge cookies.

At Nestle Confections, Wonka Randoms joined Butterfinger PB Cups as the main focus. Wonka Randoms gummy candy are a 100% natural, fruity treat, originally introduced in the United Kingdom. On the snack side, Nestle debuted its PowerBar performance wafers for quick energy before and during exercise.

MET-Rx has added a caramel coconut variety to its Big 100 Colossal line and highlighted its new energy-enhanced MET-Rx NOS Pumped bar.

At Mondelez, the BelVita “brand platform” now includes soft-baked breakfast biscuits in mixed berry and oatmeal chocolate chunk varieties. In gum, new Stride Sour Patch Kids are on its way, as well as jelly bean Trident Layers for the spring season. And in cookies, Mondelez has debuted king-size packages of Oreos to better meet the immediate-consumption occasion.

Kraft has added a jalapeno cheddar variety to its Corn Nuts snacks line. It also debuted Planters NUTrition Sustaining Energy Mix, a line of nut and granola-cluster mixes to provide a natural energy alternative. Another wholesome addition: Oscar Mayer’s P3 meat, cheese and nut packs, available in four varieties, and Kraft Stacked Cheese & Meat sticks, a 1.6-ounce stick with 10 grams of protein and available in three varieties.

General Mills highlighted its Chex Chips in four varieties: cinnamon sugar, wasabi, cheddar jalapeno and carmelized onion. Also new: Mini Pillsbury soft cookies in chocolate chip and snickerdoodle, a Nature Valley soft-baked peanut-butter oatmeal bar, Fiber One meal bars in two flavors and relaunched in c-stores, Nature Valley Nut Clusters, combining roasted nuts, seeds and granola.

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