Healthy Snacking: Future Trends & New Insights

SUMMARY

Overview

Introduction

The majority (61%) of European and US consumers have sought to improve the healthiness of their snacking in 2007. After all, snacking, despite its historically bad reputation and negative health connotations, remains an important component of consumers' daily eating and drinking behaviors. It is therefore crucial to understand what influences shoppers' choices for this growing occasion.

Scope

• Detailed insight and analysis covering healthy eating attitudes and behaviors within the context of snack foods and beverages.
• Showcases the latest best-practice product and marketing innovation highlighting how to capitalize on the developing trends now and looking forward.
• Strategic action points highlighting how manufacturers and retailers should direct resources towards answering consumers' healthy snacking needs.
• Country coverage: France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, UK and the US.

Highlights

For daily snacking, healthy options have emerged as the leading choice to satisfy hunger between meals, while less healthy snacks are reserved for more indulgent treating occasions. More than a third (36%) of Europeans and Americans overall consume healthy snacks once a day or more.

Taste is by far the most important factor in governing snack choice for consumers. Brand was least important thereby suggesting that big name manufacturers and retailers cannot rely on brand strength alone to generate healthy snack sales.

The need for convenient health is gaining momentum: nearly 6 in 10 (59%) of European and US consumers overall sought more convenient AND healthy food and drinks in 2006 compared to the 12 months previously. This behavior is driving the number of healthy snacking occasions, especially when on-the-go.

Reasons to Purchase

• Access a compelling blend of quantitative and qualitative data illustrating consumer attitudes, behaviors, and market developments.
• Understand which health concerns matter most to consumers when snacking and which healthy attributes they prioritize.
• Use the latest evidence based insight to help guide crucial health driven new product development in the healthy snacking sector.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• DATAMONITOR VIEW
  • CATALYST
  • SUMMARY
• THE FUTURE DECODED
  • TREND: Consumer interest in healthy snack alternatives is increasing
    • The frequency of healthy snacking is increasing
    • Healthy snacks are consumed with greater regularity than unhealthy ones
    • Healthy snacking occasions now outnumber unhealthy ones
    • Healthy beverage occasions are leading the market in growth terms
      • Healthy snacking is viewed as a viable regular mealtime alternative by consumers
  • TREND: On-the-go lifestyles are fuelling healthy snacking behavior
    • Consumers' on-the-go snacking is less likely to be healthy
    • On-the-go beverage occasions are becoming more healthy across Europe
  • TREND: Consumer desires for less healthy, more indulgent snacks will remain
    • Traditional snacks retain a strong appeal to consumers
    • There is a clash between the notion of healthiness and snacking
      • Skepticism towards snack's health claims persists
      • Poor alignment between "bad-for-you" snacks and healthy trends perpetuates consumer distrust
      • Health considerations have a limited bearing on traditional snack choices
  • INSIGHT: Healthy attitudes are influencing ingrained snacking behavior
    • Consumers are choosing healthy snacks to actively improve their diet and address bad habits
  • INSIGHT: Consumers seek to satisfy their health, convenience and indulgence requirements through snacking
    • Consumer demand for healthy indulgence is influencing new snack product releases
      • US beverage releases in particular are experiencing strong growth in healthy claims
  • INSIGHT: Consumer perceptions of what constitutes a healthy snack poses a challenge for the industry
    • Healthy versions of unhealthy snacks are not perceived as credibly healthy
  • INSIGHT: Taste is more important than healthiness in influencing snack and beverage choices
    • When making snack choices consumers place healthiness on a par with convenience, but behind taste
    • "Healthy" is often equated with compromized taste and flavor benefits by many consumers
  • INSIGHT: The emphasis on healthy snacking for kids will fuel market growth in the future
    • Companies are already responding to the children's healthy snack movement
• ACTION POINTS
  • ACTION: More clearly link the notion of authenticity with health in snacks
    • Consumers are seeking more authenticity
    • Authenticity = better quality = healthier
      • Consumers want authentic, simple and thus healthy snacks
  • ACTION: Respond to consumers' changing health priorities in snack formulation and positioning
    • Case Study: One-shot fruit drinks offer quick convenient solutions to health on-the-go
    • Case study: Coca-Cola augments the Minute Maid juice range to target functional health
    • Back up healthy attributes with a strong sensory appeal
  • ACTION: Tailor product positioning and goals relative to the three consumer trends of avoidance, moderation and positive nutrition
  • ACTION: Focus on providing credible healthy offerings within typically "carefree" categories
    • Case Study: the Spanish market for functional cookies
• APPENDIX
  • Definitions
  • Methodology
  • Further reading
  • Ask the analyst
  • Datamonitor consulting
  • Disclaimer
  • List of Tables
    • Table 1: Consumer survey results: the extent to which consumers are making an effort to improve the health of their snacking behaviors
    • Table 2: Consumer survey results: frequency of consumption of healthy snack products
    • Table 3: Consumer survey results: frequency of consumption of unhealthy snack products
    • Table 4: Number of overall and per capita 'healthy and 'unhealthy' snacking occasions, by country, 2006-2011
    • Table 5: Number of overall and per capita 'healthy and 'unhealthy' non-alcoholic beverage occasions, by country, 2006-2011
    • Table 6: Consumer survey: the extent to which European consumers sought food and drinks which are both convenient AND healthy compared to 12 months previously, 2006
    • Table 7: Number of overall and per capita 'healthy and 'unhealthy' on-the-go snacking occasions snacking occasions, by country, 2006-2011
    • Table 8: Number of overall and per capita 'healthy and 'unhealthy' on-the-go non-alcoholic beverage occasions, by country, 2006-2011
    • Table 9: Per capita consumption (liters) of bottled water and carbonates, Europe & US, by country, 2002-2011
    • Table 10: Consumer survey: the impact of healthy options on impulse driven snack and beverage choices
    • Table 11: Consumer survey: reasons for engaging in healthy snacking
    • Table 12: Consumer survey: perceptions concerning the healthiness of key snack food categories
    • Table 13: Consumer survey: the relative importance of different need states in influencing snack choices
    • Table 14: Consumers see "fresh" as the key indicator of healthiness in the snacking context
  • List of Figures
    • Figure 1: The majority of US and European consumers are actively looking to eat more healthily
    • Figure 2: Consumers do not view healthy snacking as a nutritional compromize like they did historically
    • Figure 3: Busy consumers are looking for a combination of convenience and health
    • Figure 4: Unhealthy snacks retain a strong share of occasions and are declining slowly
    • Figure 5: Unhealthy snack beverages dominate occasions in Europe and the US
    • Figure 6: The majority of consumers doubt the health claims of snack foods and beverages
    • Figure 7: Eat sweets to look prettier? Unhealthy products jumping on the wrong functional/healthy trend add to questioning of healthy snacks' credibility
    • Figure 8: Consumers want to escape the pressures of everyday life through small indulgences
    • Figure 9: Health is becoming an increasingly prominent product claim in indulgent/snack categories
    • Figure 10: Beverage releases in the US lead Europe in claiming healthy attributes
    • Figure 11: Coca-Cola Zero focuses on delivering a healthier version of the original Coke taste
    • Figure 12: Authenticity in ingredients and production processes supports snacks' health claims
    • Figure 13: Current snack products that respond to consumers' indicators of healthiness
    • Figure 14: Shot-based fruit and vegetable drinks offer answers to a variety of consumer health needs
    • Figure 15: Healthy snack targeting can be guided by the three trends of avoidance, moderation and positive nutrition
    • Figure 16: Healthy snack variants in "carefree" categories are proliferating