Table of Contents
Scope and Themes
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- What you need to know
- Definition
- Data sources
- Sales data
- Consumer survey data
- Advertising creative
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
Executive Summary
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- Sales of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks near all-time high despite slight decline in 2010
- Population trends both favor and hinder market
- Competition coming from a variety of directions
- Popcorn segment dealing with reports regarding product safety
- Cheese snacks eke out small growth
- Meat snacks’ success connected with Jack Link’s and other key brands
- Corn snacks weighed down by poor performance of big brands
- Supermarkets appear to have benefited from recession
- “Other” channels down but far from out
- Convenience stores continue strong growth pattern
- Growth comes naturally for natural supermarkets
- Frito-Lay product portfolio’s diversity paying off
- Innovation a key factor in salty snacks market
- Marketing strategies embrace traditional as well as online
- Snacking consumption more prevalent among under-54s, higher earners and larger households
Insights and Opportunities
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- Co-branding with complementary brands
- Cross-promoting with Netflix or other movie providers
- All-in-one popcorn bags and bowls
- Popcorn and meat snacks as meal replacements
- Developing premium private label snack brands
- Branded snacking shops
Inspire Insights
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- Inspire Trend: “Mood From Food”
Market Size and Forecast
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- Key points
- Sales near all-time high despite slight drop in 2010
- Sales and forecast—total salty snacks
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- Figure 1: Total U.S. sales and forecast of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, at current prices, 2005-15
- Figure 2: Total U.S. sales and forecast of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2005-15
- Fan chart forecast
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- Figure 3: Fan chart forecast of total U.S. retail sales of popcorn, cheese, corn, meat and other* snacks, at current prices, 2005-15
- Walmart sales
Market Drivers
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- Key points
- Asian and Hispanic population growth favors salty snacks
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- Figure 4: Population, by race and Hispanic origin, 2006-16
- Growing popularity of food-rating systems will favor healthier salty snacks
- Aging population not in salty snacks’ favor
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- Figure 5: U.S. Population, by age, 2006-16
- Number of households with children decreasing could lower purchase occasions
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- Figure 6: Households, by presence of children, 1999-2009
- Corn prices potentially causing bushels of trouble with pricing
Competitive Context
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- Key points
- Desire to eat better makes fruits/vegetables a healthy alternative to salty snacks
- Snack/cereal/energy bars have been more innovative
- Salty snack segments compete amongst themselves
- Quick-Service Restaurants’ (QSRs) aggressive pricing eating into salty snack usage occasions
- Frozen appetizers/snack rolls could chill salty snack sales
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- Figure 7: FDMx sales and forecast of frozen appetizers/snack rolls, 2005-15
Segment Performance
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- Key points
- Consumers show willingness to spend on snacks
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- Figure 8: Total U.S. sales and forecast of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, by segment, 2008 and 2010
Segment Performance—Popcorn
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- Key points
- Possible health concerns putting scare into sales
- Sales and forecast—popcorn
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- Figure 9: total U.S. sales and forecast of popcorn, at current prices, 2005-15
Segment Performance—Extruded Cheese Snacks
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- Key points
- Segment sales up slightly but losing momentum
- Sales and forecast—extruded cheese snacks
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- Figure 10: Total U.S. sales and forecast of extruded cheese snacks, at current prices, 2005-15
Segment Performance—Meat Snacks
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- Key points
- Meat snacks segment has reason to feel bullish
- Sales and forecast—meat snacks
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- Figure 11: Total U.S. sales and forecast of meat snacks, at current prices, 2005-15
Segment Performance—Corn Snacks
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- Key points
- Big brands not carrying their weight
- Sales and forecast—corn snacks
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- Figure 12: Total U.S. sales and forecast of corn snacks, at current prices, 2005-15
Retail Channels
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- Key points
- Supermarkets continue to grapple with shopper defections
- Convenience stores gain at the expense of other formats
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- Figure 13: Total U.S. retail sales of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, by retail channel, 2008 and 2010
Retail Channels—Supermarkets
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- Key points
- Supermarkets fared best during height of recession
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- Figure 14: Sales of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, at supermarkets, at current prices, 2005-10
Retail Channels—“Other” Channels
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- Key points
- Despite sales dip, “other” channels remain near all-time highs
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- Figure 15: Sales of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, at other channels*, at current prices, 2005-10
Retail Channels—Convenience Stores
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- Key points
- Convenience stores continue winning ways
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- Figure 16: Sales of popcorn, cheese snacks, meat snacks, and corn snacks, at convenience stores, at current prices, 2005-10
Retail Channels—Natural Supermarkets
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- Key points
- Insights
- Sales of salty snacks—popcorn, cheese, corn and meat snacks—in the natural channel
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- Figure 17: Natural supermarket sales of popcorn, cheese, corn and meat snacks, at current prices, 2008-10*
- Figure 18: Natural supermarket sales of popcorn, cheese, corn and meat snacks, at inflation-adjusted prices, 2008-10*
- Natural channel sales by segment
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- Figure 19: Natural supermarket sales of popcorn, cheese, corn and meat snacks, by segment, 2008 and 2010*
- Leading natural brands
- Natural channel sales by organic content
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- Figure 20: Natural supermarket sales of popcorn, cheese, corn and meat snacks, by organic content, 2008 and 2010*
- Natural channel sales by gluten-free
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- Figure 21: Natural supermarket sales of popcorn, cheese, corn and meat snacks, by gluten-free, 2008 and 2010*
Leading Companies
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- Key points
- PepsiCo’s diverse product portfolio makes it the clear leader
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- Figure 22: FDMx sales of leading popcorn, cheese, corn and meat and other snacks companies, 2009 and 2010
Brand Share—Popcorn
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- Key points
- Few brands seeing pop in sales
- ConAgra Foods remains segment leader despite sales decline
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- Figure 23: FDMx brand sales of popcorn in the U.S., 2009 and 2010
Brand Share—Extruded Cheese Snacks
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- Key points
- Frito-Lay looks to innovation to maintain its dominant position
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- Figure 24: FDMx brand sales of extruded cheese snacks in the U.S., 2009 and 2010
Brand Share—Meat Snacks
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- Key points
- Top manufacturers posting strong gains fuel growth
- Frito-Lay connects with Link Industries to maintain meat snacks presence
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- Figure 25: FDMx brand sales of meat snacks in the U.S., 2009 and 2010
Brand Share—Corn Snacks
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- Key points
- Frito-Lay dominates despite lackluster performance by newer brands
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- Figure 26: FDMx brand sales of corn snacks in the U.S., 2009 and 2010
Innovations and Innovators
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- Key points
- New product launch trends
- Snack/cereal/energy bars fuel launches
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- Figure 27: Number of snack launches, by type, 2005-10
- Nothing cheesy about cheese’s versatility
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- Figure 28: Top claims on snack launches with cheese, 2005-10
- Popcorn being more innovative in 2010
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- Figure 29: Top claims on popcorn launches, 2005-10
- New product highlights
- Popcorn
- Cheese-based
- Meat snacks
- Corn snacks
Marketing Strategies
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- Key points
- Marketing and social media
- Orville Redenbacher’s is lone brand to receive major marketing support
- Cheetos and Slim Jim Facebook with their brand names
- Jack Link’s uses its website to promote brands via Wild Side Man Cave sweepstakes
- TV advertising
- Jack Link’s connects sports with Sasquatch
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- Figure 30: Jack Link’s beef jerky, TV ad, January 2011
- Cheetos looking to make more out of snack time
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- Figure 31: Cheetos, TV ad, January 2011
- Pop Secret encourages in-home movie nights
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- Figure 32: Pop Secret, TV ad, October 2010
Salty Snack Purchase
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- Key points
- Salty snacks purchases in supermarkets and mass merchandisers crunches other outlets
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- Figure 33: Frequency of buying salty snacks at specific types of retailer, November 2010
- Multipack/bulk purchases have slight edge over single packs
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- Figure 34: Purchase of salty snacks in single pack vs. multipack/bulk, by key demographics, November 2010
Reasons for Buying Salty Snacks
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- Figure 35: Reasons for buying salty snacks—to eat now, later, for others, by age, November 2010
- Figure 36: Reasons for buying salty snacks—to eat now, later, for others, by household income, November 2010
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- Figure 37: Reasons for buying salty snacks—to eat now, later, for others, by marital status, November 2010
- Figure 38: Reasons for buying salty snacks—to eat now, later, for others, by number of people in household, November 2010
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- Figure 39: Reasons for buying salty snacks—to eat now, later, for others, by employment groups, November 2010
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- Figure 40: Reasons for buying salty snacks—stock at home/work, take to work/school, by age, November 2010
- Figure 41: Reasons for buying salty snacks—stock at home/work, take to work/school, by household income, November 2010
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- Figure 42: Reasons for buying salty snacks—stock at home/work, take to work/school, by number of people in household, November 2010
- Figure 43: Reasons for buying salty snacks—stock at home/work, take to work/school, by presence and number of children, November 2010
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Factors Impacting Choice and Purchase
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- Figure 44: Important factors when choosing chips and salty snacks, November 2010
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- Figure 45: Impact of the recession on amount of salty snacks bought, by age, November 2010
- Figure 46: Impact of the recession on amount of salty snacks bought, by household income, November 2010
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- Figure 47: Impact of the recession on amount of salty snacks bought, by presence and number of children, November 2010
- Figure 48: Impact of the recession on amount of salty snacks bought, by urban status, November 2010
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- Figure 49: Impact of the recession on amount of salty snacks bought, by education, November 2010
- More at-home time increasing salty snacks sales
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- Figure 50: Reasons for buying more salty snacks as a result of the recession, November 2010
- Figure 51: Reasons for buying fewer salty snacks as a result of the recession, November 2010
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Types of Salty Snacks Eaten
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- Key points
- Snacking consumption concentrated among younger respondents
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- Figure 52: Types of salty snacks eaten, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 53: Types of salty snacks eaten, by household income, July 2009 -Sept. 2010
- Figure 54: Types of salty snacks eaten, by number of people in household, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 55: Types of salty snacks eaten, by presence of children, July 2009-Sept. 2010
The Popcorn Consumer
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- Key points
- Orville Redenbacher’s projects upscale image
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- Figure 56: Brands of popcorn eaten, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 57: Brands of popcorn eaten, by presence of children, July 2009-Sept. 2010
The Corn, Tortilla Chips and Cheese Snacks Consumer
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- Key points
- Frito-Lay is its own prime competition in this market
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- Figure 58: Brands of corn, tortilla chips and cheese snacks eaten, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 59: Brands of corn, tortilla chips and cheese snacks eaten, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 60: Brands of corn, tortilla chips and cheese snacks eaten, by presence of children, July 2009-Sept. 2010
The Meat Snacks and Beef Jerky Consumer
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- Key points
- Usage higher among younger consumers
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- Figure 61: Brands of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 62: Brands of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Nothing too out of the ordinary for meat snacks/beef jerky consumers
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- Figure 63: Flavors of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 64: Flavors of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
Who Eats What and Factors Impacting Choice
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- Key points
- Salty snacks have fairly high personal consumption levels
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- Figure 65: Who in household eats each type of salty snack, November 2010
- Consumers feel at home with snacking occasions
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- Figure 66: Occasions when respondent personally eats each type of salty snack, November 2010
- Consumers favor name brands but are not always brand loyal
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- Figure 67: Incidence of buying name brand or store brand for each type of salty snack, November 2010
- Snacks perceived as a diversion to be enjoyed
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- Figure 68: Impact of health, taste and price considerations on the purchase of each type of salty snack, November 2010
Impact of Race/Hispanic Origin
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- Key points
- Types of salty snacks eaten
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- Figure 69: Types of salty snacks eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Brands of popcorn eaten
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- Figure 70: Brands of popcorn eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Brands of corn and tortilla chips and cheese snacks eaten
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- Figure 71: Brands of corn, tortilla chips and cheese snacks eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Brands of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten
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- Figure 72: Brands of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Flavors of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten
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- Figure 73: Flavors of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Brands of snack crackers, saltines and graham crackers eaten
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- Figure 74: Brands of snack crackers, saltines, and graham crackers eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Types of crackers, saltines and graham crackers eaten
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- Figure 75: Types of crackers, saltines, and graham crackers eaten, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Regular vs. low salt/sodium crackers
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- Figure 76: Types of crackers eaten, regular vs. low salt/sodium, by race/Hispanic origin, July 2009-Sept. 2010
Custom Consumer Tables—Mosaic Groupings
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- Key points
- Household consumption of popcorn
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- Figure 77: Household consumption of popcorn, by mosaic groupings, July 2009-September 2010
- Brands of popcorn eaten in household
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- Figure 78: Popcorn consumption by brand, by top mosaic user groups, July 2009-September 2010
- Volume of popcorn eaten in household
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- Figure 79: Number of packages of popcorn eaten in household, by top mosaic user groups, July 2009-September 2010
- Household consumption of meat snacks/beef jerky
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- Figure 80: Household consumption of meat snacks/beef jerky, by mosaic groupings, July 2009-September 2010
- Brands of meat snacks/beef jerky eaten in household
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- Figure 81: Meat snacks/beef jerky consumption by brand, by top mosaic user groups, July 2009-September 2010
- Flavors of meat snacks/beef jerky eaten in household
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- Figure 82: Flavor of meat snacks/beef jerky eaten in household, by top mosaic user groups, July 2009-September 2010
Cluster Analysis
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- Full A-Salts
- Demographics
- Characteristics
- Opportunity
- Chippers
- Demographics
- Characteristics
- Opportunity
- Low Snacks
- Demographics
- Characteristics
- Opportunity
- Cluster characteristics
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- Figure 83: Salty snack clusters, December 2010
- Figure 84: Types of chips, pretzels, nuts and seeds and other salted snacks personally eaten, by salty snack clusters, November 2010, December 2010
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- Figure 85: Important factors when choosing chips and salty snacks, by salty snack clusters, December 2010
- Figure 86: Very important factors when choosing chips and salty snacks, by salty snack clusters, December 2010
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- Figure 87: Impact of health, taste and price considerations on the purchase of cheese snacks and corn snacks, by salty snack clusters, December 2010
- Cluster demographics
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- Figure 88: Salty snack clusters, by gender, December 2010
- Figure 89: Salty snack clusters, by age group, December 2010
- Figure 90: Salty snack clusters, by household income, December 2010
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- Figure 91: Salty snack clusters, by race, December 2010
- Figure 92: Salty snack clusters, by Hispanic origin, December 2010
- Cluster methodology
IRI/Builders Panel—Key Household Purchase Measures
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- Shelf-Stable (SS) microwave popcorn
- Overview
- Consumer insights on key purchase measures – SS microwave popcorn
- Brand map
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- Figure 93: Brand map, selected brands of SS microwave popcorn buying rate, by household penetration, 2010*
- Brand leader characteristics
- Key purchase measures
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- Figure 94: Key purchase measures for the top brands of SS microwave popcorn, by household penetration, 2010*
- Dried meat snacks
- Overview
- Consumer insights on key purchase measures – jerky
- Brand map
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- Figure 95: Brand map, selected brands of jerky buying rate, by household penetration, 2010*
- Brand leader characteristics
- Key purchase measures
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- Figure 96: Key purchase measures for the top brands of Jerky, by household penetration, 2010*
- Cheese and corn snacks
- Overview
- Consumer insights on key purchase measures – cheese snacks
- Brand map
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- Figure 97: Brand map, selected brands of cheese snacks buying rate, by household penetration, 2010*
- Brand leader characteristics
- Key purchase measures
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- Figure 98: Key purchase measures for the top brands of cheese snacks, by household penetration, 2010*
- Consumer insights on key purchase measures – corn snacks (no tortilla chips)
- Brand map
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- Figure 99: Brand map, selected brands of corn snacks (no tortilla chips) buying rate, by household penetration, 2010*
- Brand leader characteristics
- Key purchase measures
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- Figure 100: Key purchase measures for the top brands of corn snacks (no tortilla chips), by household penetration, 2010*
Appendix 1: Other Useful Consumer Tables
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- Regional overview of meat snack and beef jerky consumers
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- Figure 101: Brands of meat snacks and beef jerky eaten, by region, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Cracker consumption between regular versus low-salt varieties
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- Figure 102: Types of crackers eaten, regular vs. low salt/sodium, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Cheese snacks
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- Figure 103: Occasions when respondent personally eats cheese snacks, by key demographics, November 2010
- Corn snacks
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- Figure 104: Occasions when respondent personally eats corn snacks, by key demographics, November 2010
- Pork rinds/jerky
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- Figure 105: Occasions when respondent personally eats pork rinds/jerky, by key demographics, November 2010
- Other salty snacks
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- Figure 106: Occasions when respondent personally eats other salty snacks, by key demographics, November 2010
Appendix 2: The Snack Crackers, Saltines, and Graham Crackers Consumer
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- Key points
- Nabisco has most of the top name brands
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- Figure 107: Brands of snack crackers, saltines, and graham crackers eaten, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 108: Brands of snack crackers, saltines, and graham crackers eaten, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Consumers are sweet on saltines
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- Figure 109: Types of crackers, saltines, and graham crackers eaten, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
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- Figure 110: Types of crackers, saltines, and graham crackers eaten, by household income, July 2009-Sept. 2010
- Regular vs. low salt/low sodium
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- Figure 111: Types of crackers eaten, regular vs. low salt/sodium, by age, July 2009-Sept. 2010
Appendix: Trade Associations
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