Snack Food Tr ends in the United States
The following article is a summary of “Snack Food Trends in the U.S.” report published by Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com ( www.market-research.com). The report covers the U.S retail market for snack foods, including sweet, salted, dairy, and hybrid sweet/salted snacks.
From the societal point of view, two broad forces are shaping the U.S. snack market. The first involves the decline of family sit-down meals and the blurring of the American eating habits of the distinction between meals and snacks. The second force is the pressure to make packaged snacks not only good but good-for-you, or at least not-all bad-for-you.
Americans love to snack, according to a national consumer survey by Simmons Market Research Bureau, 25% of adults often snack between meals. Statistics show that snacking, including consumption of baked snacks, is becoming more accepted.
The International Deli-Dairy-Bakery Association (IDDBA) estimates that nearly 90% of Americans indulge
in a snack on any given day, compared with only 75% who eat breakfast and 88% who eat lunch.
Fast-food restaurants, a longtime provider of “meal solutions” to a time-starved America, are now paying more attention to snack time. Some restaurant industry watchers have predicted that snack foods will be the next fast-food battleground, with major fast-food franchisers offering more sophisticated snacks and appetizers as off-hour, non-mealtime selections.
In a Hurry and on the Run
For most people, the major barrier to sit down meals and healthy eating is lack of time. As the pace of life continues to speed up, more Americans will forgo meals in place of quick-fix foods and grazing. One of the hottest growth categories in the past year have been in healthy snacks, from sugar-free candy to trail mix. Success with products like these has shown major snack makers that consumers do want healthy choices, and marketers are responding with a wider range of healthier products such as dried fruit, yogurt cups, and food bars.
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