Home/ Products & Services/Food & Beverage/North America Food & Beverage Products/Food Salt/InPerspective® / Snack Bars Prove to be One of the Most Scrutinized Categories by Shoppers
Food & Beverage - North America Food & Beverage Products
 

Snack Bars Prove to be One of the Most Scrutinized Categories by Shoppers

When shoppers are looking at snack bars, they tend to be more cognizant of which ingredients they want to see on the label, and which they want to avoid.

As holistic eating and the “clean label” trend have taken hold of the food industry, it’s no wonder that more and more consumers are checking ingredient lists than ever before.1 Some food categories, however, are more scrutinized than others. In particular, consumer expectations are relatively high for snack bars, which could consist of granola, cereal, or “nutrition” (protein/fiber) bars.2

Snack bars are increasingly popular among consumers due to their “on-the-go” convenience, as well as accompanying advertising that highlights nutritional attributes they may contain.3 In response to consumer demand, nearly 28,000 new snack bar products have entered the market in the last 5 years, increasing annually.4

When shoppers are looking at snack bars, they tend to be more cognizant of which ingredients they want to see on the label, and which they want to avoid.2 When it comes to salt, consumers are likely to seek out sea salt on snack bars than they are when just shopping in general. In fact, compared to packaged foods overall, consumers are more likely to avoid snacks bars that they perceive to contain highly-processed products and long ingredient lists; organic ingredients and non-GMO verifications are much more sought after by consumers.2

Snack manufacturers have great opportunities for strategic innovation with this research in mind. Consumers want trusted brands they can rely on to deliver the nutritious ingredients they expect in their snack bars. By partnering with Cargill Salt, food manufacturers will have the ingredients, resources, and expertise to respond to evolving consumer expectations.

To learn more about our sea salt and sodium reduction portfolios, visit https://www.cargill.com/food-beverage/na/food-salt.

 

Sources:

  1. Cargill Proprietary – IngredienTracker™ 2019
  2. Cargill Proprietary – IngredienTracker™ Purchase Impact by Category 2019
  3. https://www.reuters.com/brandfeatures/venture-capital/article?id=104183
  4. Innova Market Insights