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Cookies are a bakery treat that fit in many places—solo snacking sessions, birthdays and special occasions, tucked into lunchboxes for school or work consumption, and more. 

Buns and rolls will never not be valued in the U.S.—whether you’re a carnivore, flexitarian, or vegetarian, you’re inevitably going to be eating a hamburger or perhaps veggie burger this summer. 

Consumers have been looking to eat healthier, and producers are responding, offering multigrain, keto, and other options for loaf bread.

Bars remain big business—the portability, flavor variety, better-for-you options, and other attributes of the bakery category appeals to hungry commuters, on-the-go moms and their offspring, health-conscious snackers, and other consumer segments.

Consumers continue to crave salty snacks—that behavior isn’t fading anytime soon. However, shoppers increasingly seek more meaningful than mindless noshes.

Inflation continues to eat away (no pun intended) at the food budgets of the average U.S. consumer. The effects are being felt by all manner of businesses, from restauranteurs serving fewer diners in their establishments to many snack and bakery producers moving fewer units than pre-pandemic days.

If you’ve never visited a large-scale bakery facility, stepping onto the production floor of Highland Baking’s flagship location in Northbrook, IL is likely to overwhelm. 

Chocolate is a treat that will never go out of style—whether it’s a consumer purchasing it for their own consumption, or perhaps as a gift for friends or family, it is a well-loved dessert. 

It makes sense that mint sales are up (though modestly, when looking at units sold) as recovery from the effects of the pandemic marches on. 

Some candies don’t fit neatly into one column or another. That’s okay; the “other” candies like marshmallows, spreads, interactive novelty items, and such seem to be fitting into consumers’ candy budgets just fine.