Special Reports

RSS

Over the past 15 years, Late July Snacks, the 2018 Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery "Snack Producer of the Year", has steadily grown its business to its position today as a leader in organic, non-GMO snacks, most notably its strong level of innovation in the tortilla chip category.

In 2015, we launched the "Best New Snack & Bakery Products" contest to honor outstanding new snack and bakery products. After voting for the 2017 contest concluded in mid-December, TERRA Plantain chips and PowerBar Plant Protein bars emerged as clear victors.

The U.S. retail snack industry is currently valued at nearly $40 billion, accounting for sales of salty snacks like chips, popcorn, pretzels, puffed/extruded snacks and tortilla chips, as well as crackers, frozen grain-based snacks and appetizers like pizza rolls, and snack mixes and nuts.

Over four centuries ago, the brilliant Italian astronomer, physicist, engineer, philosopher and mathematician Galileo Galilei insightfully proposed that “passion is the genesis of genius.” Passion tied to a good idea motivates action. And good ideas like to grow.

At its core, eating quality seals the deal on the repeat purchase of a snack. Those of us in the industry might rank a snack’s hedonistic level—the level of pleasure consumption delivers. Snacks can also face organoleptic scrutiny, determining its positive (or negative) interactions with our senses.

Manufacturers of tortilla and tostada chips continue to expand the boundaries of their offerings, in terms of both more imaginative flavors and attempts to address consumer concerns about the healthfulness of a category traditionally known for corn, salt and carbs.

The versatile puffed and extruded snack segment is answering the call of consumers who want to try different flavor profiles and combinations. On the traditional side, products such as Cheetos continue to prosper in the marketplace. In fact, total annual sales for cheese snacks just reached $2.1 billion. Through a balance of tradition and forward-thinking innovation, this segment represents the best of both worlds.

Once a simple snack aisle staple, the humble pretzel is experiencing a resurgence, as restaurant menus tap into the classic flavors of this ubiquitous snack. According to Mintel, Chicago, there has been significant growth in the number of pretzel buns on menus recently, to the tune of 97 percent more items on menus than in previous years.

Within the past few years, choices for popcorn flavors have become more diverse. In 2017, you can choose to eat popcorn straight from the bag, made in the microwave, or even drizzled with chocolate. Consumers can even choose from flavors like honey butter and ranch. For today’s popcorn fans, this category offers more snacking options than ever before.

In a food culture that increasingly prizes clean label, fresh flavors and nutritional benefits, companies working in the freezer case need to integrate selective strategic innovations while holding true to the convenience and quality shoppers have come to expect in classic, category-leading frozen snacks and appetizers.