Grab-and-go, convenience, to-go, snackification — no matter what term you’re using to describe munching on smaller foodstuffs, the fact is that consumers are snacking more than ever before. Once upon a time, snacking was a between meal or midnight pick-me-up to curb hunger, satisfy a craving or to comfort us in stressful times. Although the reasons for snacking may have not changed too drastically, Americans are replacing meals with snacks more than ever before, creating a drive for better-for-you expansion of the category.
Can we really replace entire meals with snacks? Consumers are saying yes. In fact, the International Food Information Council’s 2020 Food & Health Survey showed that 26% of U.S. consumers snack multiple times per day; one-third snack at least once daily; and 38% replace meals with snacks “at least occasionally.” Almost three-quarters of Americans are trying to limit their sugar intake, and more than half are looking at better-for-you ingredients that taste great.
Honey is an all-natural sweetener that adds flavor and functionality, such as binding munchies like nuts and seeds together in a food bar. Honey also provides a nice juxtaposition of flavor with salty snacks.
From a marketing perspective, new snack foods with honey benefit from the ingredient’s popularity. Respondents to a 2020 National Honey Board Consumer Attitudes & Usage Study ranked honey No. 1 among Americans as the most preferred sweetener for the first time ever. A rising number of snackers are turning to honey for unprocessed, flavorful and all-natural sweetening of their favorite noshes. And, in turn, manufacturers are answering the call for honey, with a number of innovative new snacking products on store shelves.
