Snackification describes the phenomenon of people increasingly consuming smaller meals (snacks) throughout the day, instead of the classic three daily meals that was the norm for many decades - especially in Western countries. This is also being driven by producers increasing their launches of snacking formats. While this trend is now well-established, what is changing is the increasing demand for more nutritious snacks to allow even greater substitution of “classic meals”, together with growing understanding of consumers’ habits and nutrition. This is especially true among younger generations.
Leading factors for consumers’ healthy choices
In recent years, the issue of health has become much more important to many consumers for various reasons - including the pandemic - which highlighted the importance of a strong immune system.
It is unsurprising that the topic of the "immune system" is at the forefront of many consumers' minds when they are asked about their understanding of what it means to be healthy
Source: Euromonitor International’s Voice of the Consumer: Health and Nutrition Survey (fielded January to February 2023, 21,221)
However, as shown by Euromonitor International’s Voice of the Consumer: Health and Nutrition Survey (fielded January to February 2023, 21,221), it is "mental wellbeing" which leads. This extremely important topic is finally moving more into focus within society, but it is often still a niche when it comes to being addressed by the food industry.
Awareness of health from nutrition is increasing
While the immune system and mental health are important, are they enough to make health such an important topic for snacks that it is entirely applicable to the snackification trend? It shows at least that health can be understood and addressed in different ways. However, as snackification means that major, traditional meals are being increasingly replaced by smaller meals and snacks during the day, further exploration of this trend could mean an individual consumer would have to rethink their entire diet.
The danger of the snackification trend is that, in switching to a snack-based diet for reasons of convenience, a consumer begins to miss out on many important, sometimes vital, nutrients, vitamins and minerals (despite perhaps gaining greater enjoyment from the indulgence many snacks allow). Over time, those who are eating in a snack-based way may either realise themselves that a change of habit in consumption is necessary or may be informed of this by a doctor or other medical professional. Doctors are also more likely to advise this type of consumer to reduce their sugar intake and participate in more regular exercise. After all, obesity and overweight rates were already rising prior to the pandemic. According to the World Health Organization, obesity rates among adults have more than doubled since 1990. The pandemic further boosted overweight populations in most countries and diseases related to poor nutrition (such as diabetes) are becoming the norm among older people, and less the exception among younger generations.
Health is clearly not just a topic that is being increasingly discussed, as consumers are actually forced to address their own health. This is especially true given that they have less time to cook for themselves, work full-time, and often lead faster and more stressful lifestyles, and therefore often rely on smaller but more frequent meals during the day. If this trend gains greater momentum in the long term, such smaller meals need to be as nutritious as the “classic meals” they replace.
The challenge of increasing price sensitivity
Inflation in 2022 and 2023 has left many people, especially in Western countries, with lower disposable incomes, with price becoming a more important purchasing criterion. While consumers on low incomes have always had to pay close attention to the price of food, the sharp rise in inflation has impacted those across a much wider income bracket and made saving money on food important to a larger audience. Even consumer groups that tend to spend more money on premium products are now increasingly looking for cheaper alternatives.
It is important to understand which food characteristics consumers are still willing to pay more money for. Here, health ranks first.
Source: Euromonitor International Voice of the Consumer: Health and Nutrition Survey, fielded January-February 2023 (n=21,221)
The demand for healthy snacks will continue to grow
In conclusion, while increased prices are currently a major issue for consumers, the importance of health in food choices is likely to remain a prevalent trend in the long term. In addition, the pressure to eat more healthily will continue to grow each year due to the greater risk of illnesses caused by poor nutrition along with rising obesity rates, although there will also be growing awareness of such health issues. As a result, health claims will be a main growth area in the continuing trend of snackification.
Want to know more about the major topic of Snackification? Read our report Revisiting the Fundamentals of Snackification for further analysis of the main drivers and implications of Snackification for the food industry.