尽管食品价格通胀困扰整个economy over the past year, Americans continue to stock up on snacks. Strong sales will likely continue this year as Americans flock to convenient, healthy and indulgent snacks, experts say.

2022年,snack sales in all outlets climbed 11.7% to$58.7 billion, according to IRI and 210 Analytics. The IRI data encompasses the latest 52 weeks ending Dec. 4.

Out of all snack options, salty snacks drove sales last year, accounting for nearly $35 billion in sales, while meat snacks and jerky sales reached $4.6 billion.

There is “aggressive dollar sales growth as spending on snacks remains resilient,” according to 210 Analytics Principal Anne-Marie Roerink, despite a drop in volume over the past year due to inflation, reductions in supply inputs and a slower return to “normal” social and work activities post-COVID-19.

“Manufacturers and retailers have not been able to promote as much as pre-pandemic, but some are working on offering manageable prices to consumers who are struggling to stay on budget by shrinking the packages,”Roerinksaid.

Plus, despite the pressure on consumers’ incomes, “we see continued strength in sustainable and health-related innovations, with claims such as high protein, plant-based or gluten free driving growth for the category,”she指出。

The top trends expected to benefit snack growth in 2023tie in with consumers’ ongoing price concerns as well as their desire for innovation and healthier lifestyles.

Snacking on the go realizes a resurgence

Many consumers have resumed the daily habits and activities they enjoyed before the pandemic, leading to an uptick in demand for on-the-go snacks.

“Most the nation’s children are back in school, sports and other activities are back in full swing and more and more people are going back to working at the place of business, at least part of the time,”Roerinksaid. “We see this impact on strength for lunchbox items — small bags — but also in the way people are treating now.”

Many schools now require shareable items to be individually wrapped, which has prompted many shoppers to bypass in-store bakery items like cookies and cakes in favor of items typically found in the snack aisle,Roerink指出。

“During the pandemic, many saw a surge in grocery sales and figuring out how to hold on to those sales will be key to keep up with the pandemic sales patterns,” she said.

Consumers are also increasingly purchasing pre-prepared cold grab-and-go snacks, added BretYonke, director of research and insights at foodservice consulting firmTechnomic. “Convenience is likely driving this as cold offerings do not have to be eaten right away. This presents a greater window of opportunity in consumers’minds when making a purchase (e.g., can save it for later, etc.),”Yonkesaid.

Snack makers focus on ‘unexpected flavor combinations’

In recent years, the snack industry has been able to spike sales with limited-time flavors and innovative texturesand designs. While new product launches took a back seat at the start of the pandemic, they were back in full force last year.

PepsiCo’s Lay’s brand, for example, has been very progressive with new flavors, including WavyCarnitasStreet TacosChips —one of three flavors launched in Octoberto celebrate the World Cup.

New snack口味include Korean, Indian andMexicaninfluences, along with a wider variety of ingredients, such as sweet potatoes, mushroom jerky, taro bites, freeze dried mango, andlegumes as the base for chips,Roerink指出。不同寻常的新小吃包括薯片智慧h dried beef “chips” fromCarnisnacks, and Mascot’s Sweet Georgia Heat Pecans.

For 2023,Roerinkpredicts “really fun flavors coming out. Spicy continues to be hot, but more than anything just unexpected flavor combinations.” Manufacturers will also launch more limited-time flavors in order to prompt impulse purchases and optimize category engagement, she said.

Inaddition, plant-based and health-focused snack foods will continue to be an area of focus for new snacks,Roerinkpredicted.

“I think there is opportunity to continue to innovate in conventional snacking, whether pack size, packaging innovations, flavors, new textures, etc. Younger generations, especially, love snack adventures,”shesaid.

Snack prices rise, but are still seen as affordable

Snack prices have risen 12.6% on average for the year ending Dec. 4, according toIRIand 210 Analytics. Due to their concern about overall inflation, 30% of Americans plan to reduce snack purchases, Numerator found in its DecemberMonthly Consumer Sentiment Survey.

These figures seem to indicate that consumers may pull back on their snack purchases after enduring high prices for so many months.

But Roerink believes that many shoppers still see a lot of value across the many snacking options that stores carry.

“While this is a substantial increase, most snacks remain an affordable item, certainly when comparing items bought at retail versus those bought in foodservice,”Roerinksaid.

Inaddition, both smaller pack sizes and large family packs are helping consumers “meet the price point they are able to afford,”Roerinksaid.

While some consumer surveys have shown that consumers may start to contract into core, primary food items during times of inflation, that may not actually materialize in their buying habits,Roerinkexplained.

"I think we have to keep in mind that sometimes people answer surveys with their altruistic selves but shop as the more realistic, perhaps economic selves,” she said.

Healthy snacks continue to grow and innovate

Even as many consumers remain price sensitive, analysts see continued strength in sustainable and health-related innovations in snacking. In particular, claims such as high protein, plant-based or gluten free are driving growth for the category, according toRoerink.

The market for healthy snacks — typically those low in sodium and sugar — is expected to hit an annual growth rate of 6.5% from 2022 to 2029 and reach $152 billion by 2029, according toMeticulous Research.

The growth of this market is driven by the increasing health consciousness among consumers, the rising demand for functional andhealthy foods and the increasing popularity of convenience foods and on-the-go snacks, Meticulous noted in its report.

Roerinkis seeing “better-for-you” options across all snackcategories. “We see chips that are plant-based, have added protein or are gluten-free. We see meat snacks that are playing into diet trends by having no sugar,”shesaid.

Meat snacks are also focusing on other growth areas in that niche, including bringing moregrass-fed beefand organic meat options to the category.

Despite the premium on healthy snacks, consumers — particularlymillennials— want to purchase them,Roerinkadded. “To start, this generation grew up with packagecalloutsand labels, so they are used to looking for them. But it is also the generation that is biggest into organic, grass-fed, etc and are likely to have younger children,”Roerinksaid.

Analysts agree that traditional salty and indulgent snacks are where shoppers put the most dollars.Still, better-for-you snacks are seen as “critical” to those consumers who value them, saidDavid Browne, a market research and retail consultantfor the natural and专业food industry

“They may still be buying as much as ever while making concessions in other areas,” he added.