Snacking Closeup: 2023 State of the Industry Report

Snacking Makes a BIG Impact!

SNAC International’s 2023 State of the Industry Report, brought together by Circana (previously IRI) and Sosland Publishing, takes a deep dive into the latest on industry trends, sales/unit data, new product innovation, and insights from some of the leading innovators contributing to the snack industry.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll find inside…

Snacking is on the rise!

In the early 2000’s, consumers that snacked frequently ate several snacks per week, but now:

About 25% of consumers say they snack every afternoon

Afternoon Snack

with another 25% saying they snack every evening.

Evening Snack
$186.4 billion in snack and snack-adjacent sales
Stacks of coins
27 percent of all food sales
Snack foods account for 27% of all food and beverage sales in the U.S.

The snack industry…

Employs 395,000 individuals
Compensates $15 billion in wages
Wallet
$11 Billion Tax Revenue
Generates $11 billion in tax revenue
The overall salty snack category posted 15.6% growth with more than $28 billion in dollar sales in 2022.
$28B Sales of snacks with 15% Growth
Savory snacks make up 57% of the snack category, representing $58.3 billion in sales (includes hot, salty and meat snacks as well as lunch box-compatible snacks)
Savory Snacks
Lunchbox Snacks
Return to school and in-person work has driven lunchbox compatible and salty snacks growth by 16% and 14% respectively
Sweet snacks sales represent $30.4 billion in sales (includes cookies, bars, sweet cups, fruit snacks and dried fruit)
Sweet Snacks
88% of snackers like flavor
88% of consumers say flavor is important for making snack choices
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State of the Industry Report

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SNAC State of the Industry Report 2023

TAKING A DEEPER DIVE: Category Reports

All data is from Circana (previously IRI) and commissioned by SNAC International.

At a Glance: Snack Sales Soar

Snack sales by type of snack chart

Potato Chips Keep Chippin’ Away

  • $7.8 billion in sales, representing a 14.5% growth in 2022
  • While consumers show a preference for familiar flavors, 70% indicated excitement to try new flavors or variations of their favorite snack in 2023 than in previous years.
  • 1 in 4 Americans prefer salty snacks
  • ½ of consumers prefer a puff style snack
  • Partnering with other brands remains popular in creating new flavors

Tortilla Chips Take Flavor By Storm

  • Spicy, savory and sassy flavors resulted in $6.1 billion in sales – a 16.6% growth in 2022
  • Healthy remains popular!
    • Biggest Growth Caveat: The unhealthy image of fried snacks
    • The Solution: Continue adding functional ingredients such as fiber, protein, minerals, vitamins, seeds and more to alleviate concerns
  • Several top selling tortilla chip brands have flavors so popular they are crossing into other snack categories such as potato chips, popcorn and more.

Popcorn Delivers an Eye-Popping Performance

  • 9 out of 10 brands in the popcorn category saw sales increase in 2022
  • 7 out of 10 experienced a double-digit hike, ringing in an overall 13.1% rise for the $1.7 billion market.

Pretzels Ride the Wave of Flavor

  • Consumers appetite for flavored pretzels has given way to a 17.5% growth in dollar sales ($1.7 billion) along with 2.3% growth in unit sales, indicating higher prices are not deterring shoppers.
  • Inspiration for new flavors is coming from around the world as well as crossovers with flavor-forward brands.

Crackers…Savvy and Snappy

  • Dollar sales for the $8.5 billion cracker category were up 12.8%, while unit sales dropped 4.0%.
  • Brands are offering a variety of better-for-you crackers, including gluten-free, vegan, plant-based and more.
  • Cracker brands are delivering snackers a little fun with new innovations on the shelves and in social media such as the lively campaigns of Cheez-It on TikTok.
  • Mashups, new flavors, and limited time offers are keeping consumers interested in trying the latest combinations.

Corn Snacks are HOT, HOT, HOT

  • Corn snacks demonstrated strong growth with each of the top five brands increasing in both units and dollars.
  • Dollar sales soared to $1.5 billion, a 21.1% growth.

Cheese Snacks Savor the Flavor

  • The $2.6 billion category saw 13.9% growth by continuing to create new flavors, many tied consumers’ unending love of hot and spicy snacks.
  • Creative marketing and nimble social media campaigns have kept fans engaged and coming back for more.

Pork Rinds Transcend Their Humble Beginnings

  • The Pork Rind category struggled in 2022 with a 2.1% decline in dollar sales ($404 million) and a 9.5% drop in unit sales.
  • Looking to widen their reach beyond their core customer, “a redneck with a paycheck”, pork rinds benefit from their low-carb, high protein profile.
  • New products like pork rinds as salad toppers and substitute for breadcrumbs offer consumers a high-protein alternative to carb-centric counterparts.
  • Product innovation relies on tapping into the low-carb craze and interesting flavors to gain consumer attention.

More category reports can be found within the full report.

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State of the Industry Report

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