The FINANCIAL — Global snack sales totaled $374 billion annually as of March 2014—an increase of 2% year-over-year, according to Nielsen retail sales data.
Europe ($167 billion) and North America ($124 billion) make up the majority of worldwide snack sales, with sales flat in Europe, and growing at a 2% rate in North America, compared to the previous year. Conversely, while annual snack sales in Asia-Pacific ($46 billion), Latin America ($30 billion) and the Middle East/Africa ($7 billion) are significantly lower than in the other two regions, annual growth in these largely developing regions increased more over the past year—4% in Asia-Pacific, 9% in Latin America and 5% in the Middle East/Africa, according to the Nielsen Company.
Confections—which include sugary sweets like chocolate, hard candy and gum—comprise the biggest sales contribution to the overall snack category in Europe ($46.5 billion) and the Middle East/Africa ($1.9 billion). Salty snacks contribute more than one-fifth of snack sales in North America ($27.7 billion), refrigerated snacks comprise almost one-third of snacks in Asia-Pacific ($13.7 billion) and cookies and snack cakes make up more than one-fourth of total snacks in Latin America ($8.6 billion).
While sugary and salty snacks take the lion’s share of sales, the fastest-growing snack categories are the ones to watch. Sales of savory snacks, which include crackers, rice cakes and pita chips, increased 21% in the last year in Latin America. Meat snacks, like jerky and dried meat, grew 25% in the Middle East/Africa and 15% in North America. Refrigerated snacks, including yogurt, cheese snacks and pudding, jumped 6.4% in Asia-Pacific, while dips and spreads, which include salsa and hummus, rose 6.8% in Europe, according to the Nielsen Company.
“Non-sugary snacks closely aligned with meal-replacement foods are showing strong growth, which signals a shift in a consumer mindset to one focused on health,” said Dunn. “While conventional cookies, cakes and confections categories still hold the majority share of snack sales, more innovation in the healthy snacking and portable food space is necessary to adjust to this changing dynamic,” Dunn added,
Favorite Snack Picks
Fresh fruit is the favorite snack for many. But chocolate was a close second.
Across the regions, and by large margins, global respondents say that fresh fruit (18%) is the snack of choice selected from a list of 47 different snacking options, followed by chocolate (15%). Both snack categories scored more than double or triple the responses for yogurt (6%), bread/sandwiches (6%), cheese (5%), potato chips/tortilla chips/crisps (5%), vegetables (5%) and ice cream/gelato (4%). Still, as the wide range of low percentages suggest, consumers’ preferences vary greatly when it comes to picking a favorite, according to the Nielsen Company.
Choosing just one snack is hard, which is why consumers don’t. They want variety.
In the span of 30 days, at least half of global respondents say they ate chocolate (64%), fresh fruit (62%), vegetables (52%), cookies/biscuits (51%), bread/sandwich (50%) and yogurt (50%). More than four in 10 respondents consumed cheese (46%), potato chips/tortilla chips/crisps (44%) and nuts/seeds (41%). One-third chewed gum (33%) and devoured ice cream/gelato (33%), while about one-fourth munched on popcorn (29%), crackers/crisp breads (28%) and cereal (27%). Softer offerings like dumplings (26%) and instant noodles (26%) were also popular with a quarter of respondents.
Taste preferences for snack options are noticeably different around the world. Besides fresh fruit and chocolate, large percentages of respondents also snack on vegetables in Asia-Pacific (57%), cheese in Europe (58%), bread/sandwiches in the Middle East/Africa (47%), ice cream/gelato in Latin America (63%) and potato chips/tortilla chips in North America (63%), according to the Nielsen Company.
“In the dichotomy of snacking, consumers want healthy, but yet indulgent options are still going strong,” said Dunn. “A better understanding of consumer demand and the need states that drive demographic profile preferences will help manufacturers crack the code on the right portfolio balance between indulgence and healthy. It will also increase the odds of success in this ultra-competitive landscape,” Dunn added.
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