Top 5 Cracker Trends

Cracker Trends, Contract Manufacturing Cracker Trends

Posted: August 27,2018

Lifestyle, flavor, packaging, ingredient transparency, claims and so many more factors drive cracker trends. TH Foods’ team of snack experts is always looking at ways to stay on top of trends and create products that will catapult off the shelves and into shopping carts.

By reviewing data from a variety of sources such as Mintel, Dataessentials, Hartman Research, Simmons Research and TH Foods’ own proprietary research, TH Foods gained some insight into trends to watch in the cracker market.

Cracker Trends to Watch

Grain-Free and Paleo-Friendly: This trend has been steadily on the rise as consumers are trying grain-free and paleo-friendly in the form of 30-day challenges and as a way to lose weight.

Low sugar/Less calories for more – Consumers are drawn to claims of low or no sugar and more for the calorie count.

Vegetable-Based – Health conscious consumers trying to incorporate more vegetables into their diets will gravitate towards crackers with ingredients like cauliflower and beets.

Sweet Crackers – Millennials are looking for guilt-free, indulgent snacks and are driving the trend for sweeter crackers.

Diet Friendly – 44% of consumers indicated they are on some kind of diet and are looking for products to help them maintain diets like Whole 30, paleo, vegan and gluten-free.

Consider the Package

In a study conducted by Lightspeed & Mintel in 2017, survey respondents were asked what an ideal cracker would be. Interestingly, the answers did not primarily revolve around taste and texture, but rather packaging. 61% said the ideal cracker would have resealable packaging, 41% said on-the-go packaging and 39% said crush-resistant packaging. Other ideal crackers came packaged with other items like dips, toppings, nuts and cheeses.

All the interest around packaging is not to say that flavor isn’t important. 54% of respondents agree that flavored crackers are tastier than plain ones. Looking to create that next on-trend, unique cracker for your portfolio? Contact our Contract Manufacturing/Private Label team today.

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