Americans spent a greater portion of their cash on healthier products while shelling out US$61.4bn on snack foods during 2005.


According to a report from Packaged Facts called Snack Food Trends, annual cookies and bakery snack sales have fallen by $334m over the past five years, while the crackers and popcorn/rice cakes segments each experienced losses of $45m.
 
Meanwhile, Packaged Facts confirmed that yoghurt snacks are leading in dollar growth with gains of US$721m, while food bars and nut snacks also experienced gains, with greater emphasis on heightened natural and nutritional tags such as “no trans fat” and “nothing artificial.”
 
Packaged Facts Publisher Don Montuori said: “In the last five years, snacking overall has increased by 1.5% as the trend for meals being replaced by snacks continues to grow. Consumers are serious about these ‘meals’ being healthy. Simultaneously, manufacturers are serious about meeting consumer, watchdog, and governmental demands to make snacks more nutritious – particularly those aimed at kids. These factors are driving a fundamental industry shift which should expand it while making snacking healthier.”