Oser Communications Group

SNACKING NEWS 4 SNACKING NEWS October 2017 WWW.SNACKINGNEWS.COM PUBLISHER Kimberly Oser SENIOR ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Jules Denton jules_d@oser.com EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Lorrie Baumann EDITOR Robin Mather ASSOCIATE EDITORS Jeanie Catron Micah Cheek Greg Gonzales JoEllen Lowry Karrie Welborn ART DIRECTOR Yasmine Brown GRAPHIC DESIGNER Jonathan Schieffer CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGERS Sarah Glenn Caitlyn McGrath DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS Tara Neal tara_n@oser.com CIRCULATION MANAGER Jamie Green subscriptions@oser.com PUBLISHING OFFICE 1877 N. Kolb Road Tucson, AZ 85715 520.721.1300 Fax 520.721.6300 SUBSCRIBER SERVICES Snacking News P.O. Box 30520 Tucson, AZ 85751 520.721.1300 OSER COMMUNICATIONS GROUP FOUNDER Lee M. Oser Periodicals postage paid at Tucson, AZ, and additional mailing office. Snacking News is published monthly by Oser Communications Group, 1877 North Kolb Road, Tucson, AZ 85715; 520.721.1300. Publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material or prices quoted in newspaper. Contributors are responsible for proper release of proprietary classified information. ©2017 by Oser Communications Group. All rights re- served. Reproduction, in whole or in part, without written permission of the publisher, is expressly pro- hibited. Back issues, when available, cost $7 each within the past 12 months, $12 each prior to the past 12 months. Back orders must be paid in advance either by check or charged to American Express, Visa, or Master Card. Snacking News is distributed without charge in North America to qualified professionals in the retail and distribution channels of the chain drug, convenience, grocery, and specialty foods trade; paid subscriptions cost $65 annually to the U.S. and Canada. All foreign subscriptions cost $150 annually to cover air delivery. All payments must be made in U.S. funds and drawn on a U.S. bank. For subscriber services, including subscription information, call 520.721.1300. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Snacking News, 1877 North Kolb Road, Tucson, AZ 85715. Fresh Facts to Boost Your Business It's no secret that snack- ing is fast replacing sit- down meals with consumer groups of all ages. Packaged Facts, a market research group, reports that "the past two years in particular have seen much stronger market growth (for snacks) due to double-digit gains in the meat snack and trail mix categories in 2014, and stronger growth in snack bars in 2015." The snack segment is antici- pated to grow 5.7 percent a year through 2020, Packaged Facts said. To help busy retailers stay up-to-date on trends and statistics, Oser Communica- tions, publisher of Gourmet News, intro- duces Snacking News. Written just for retailers, the new bimonthly print maga- zine will bring you news and views on the snacking segment. Each issue will be packed with news you can use, including new-product information for both sweet and savory snacks, retailer profiles and much more. As its editor, I'll do my best to keep you informed. I've written about food for more than 35 years, as both a newspaper and magazine food journalist. This year alone, I've covered the Sweets & Snacks Expo, the Summer Fancy Food Show and the American Cheese Society's annual meet- ing for Gourmet News, and I've seen plenty already that you need to know about. At the Sweets & Snacks Expo, for ex- ample, I saw seven hot trends that may in- fluence your snack stocking decisions: Sweet meets hot, in which manufactur- ers offer sweet heat in candy and confec- tionery. A perfect example: Little Bird Kitchen's white and dark chocolates with candied jalapeños. Artisanal and craft products, sometimes in new twists on old favorites, like Peeps Delights, the familiar marshmallow treat now dipped in chocolate and offered in seasonal flavors. Crunchy munchies, like Reese's Crunchers, which include mini chocolate chips, rice puffs and peanuts covered in chocolate. Birthday cake flavor, teasing consumers looking for the flavors of childhood to try products like Hammond's Birthday Cake Caramel Corn and the American Licorice Company's Red Vine Twistettes. Garbanzos getting their moment, both roasted whole and seasoned in a variety of ways and as chickpea flour in the ingredi- ent list of many other snacks. Coconut oil shows no sign of melting from view, with a slew of savory snacks boasting the trendy oil as an ingredient and/or as a frying oil. Barks as a snacking chocolate, often with trendy superfood inclusions such as quinoa and goji berries. Functional foods continue to soar, as customers reach for snacks that promise extra protein, better nutritional profiles and "free-from" assurances, with gluten-free still hot. Chicago-based Mintel, another market research company, advises retailers that popcorns will show further growth, and cheese snacks, with a category share of 38 percent, will continue their popularity. Millennials are more likely than any other generation to snack four times a day, Mintel says, and in many cases, more than that. In fact, Mintel says, 94 percent of Americans say they snack at least once a day. Let Snacking News help you capture some of that business. And don't hesitate to write with suggestions, story ideas and tips: Reach me any time at editor@oser.com. n

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