Our latest categorywatching report is now on the hub, taking a look at what's trending across Crisps, Nuts and Savoury Snacking. The report also includes popcorn, meat snacks, savoury crackers, breadsticks and pretzels too.
The trend for snacking is growing, especially with Millennials and Gen Z being inspired by social media and turning almost anything into a snack, evolving the category even more. Air-fried Doritos pizza where tomato, cheese and meat are loaded onto crisps has gone viral prompting new usage as snacks replace main meals or become that bit bigger.
Health continues as a priority and we're looking for snacks for benefits such as protein and mood-boosting credentials. Even air-popped lentils are associated with gut-friendly feel good vibes. Yet, we're not so nuts about nuts with the high price point putting some people off, in the UK volumes are in decline at -5.5% YOY (Kantar 2023). Flavour innovation and smaller on the go packaging that bring the price down are key to further growth.
In our latest categorywatching report on TrendHub, we look at trends in flavours, formats, eating occasions, sustainability, health and more. Here are the three key take-outs from our report:
1. Green touch - As climate change continues to impact their decision-making, consumers are won over by snacks that can boast eco-credentials, as well as being delicious. Things like crackers made from spent brewers' grains, fruit crisps that use the whole plant (including stems, rinds, etc), jerky produced from regeneratively farmed animals, gourmet chicken skins for nose-to-tail snacking… All wrapped up in recyclable, biodegradable or compostable packaging, of course.
2. Big, bold flavours - Consumers are ever more keen to experiment with bold flavour hits. They satisfy their hot, spicy side with the likes of wasabi and mustard – e.g. pretzel chips with mustard-cheese dip. And speaking of cheese… Savoury (umami) flavour continues to drive innovation, with ingredients like cheddar, parmesan, mushroom, seaweed, truffle, garum (fermented savoury paste), animal fat and more layered up for ultimate savoury taste and mouthfeel. And not to be outdone, salty and sour ingredients also step up to the plate as in the guise of flavoured salts and vinegars. Salt and vinegar pork scratchings, anyone?
3. Five A Day - Consumers are looking for ways to incorporate more plants – i.e. fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds – into their diet, and snacks present a great opportunity to do this in simple, stealthy ways. Think beyond the humble potato crisp – and consider instead the likes of roasted chickpeas, pickled lupin beans, dehydrated mushrooms crisps, sweet potato skins, salted chilli corn, salted sesame seed crackers… and you get the picture!
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