Nutritional snack bars represent a $6 billion dollar market in the United States and are one of the fastest growing food/beverage product categories in mass merchandise channels with annual sales growth estimated at 6.4%.
The growing popularity of nutritional snack bars is likely attributed to the increasing interest in healthy eating, and the rise in snacking behavior of U.S. consumers. Research from the Food Marketing Institute indicates that 80% of Americans are making some or a lot of effort to eat healthy. This same study also found 42% of Americans are very concerned about the nutrient content of the foods they buy. Snacking frequency is up in 2012 with 49% of consumer reporting snacking 1 to 2 times per day, and 43% reporting 3 to 4 times per day.
Two of the most important consumer segments for all products in the U.S. are the baby boomers, due to their size and current purchasing power, and the Millennials, who are poised to overtake the boomers in numbers and spending power by 2020.
The growing popularity of nutritional snack bars is likely attributed to the increasing interest in healthy eating, and the rise in snacking behavior of U.S. consumers. Research from the Food Marketing Institute indicates that 80% of Americans are making some or a lot of effort to eat healthy. This same study also found 42% of Americans are very concerned about the nutrient content of the foods they buy. Snacking frequency is up in 2012 with 49% of consumer reporting snacking 1 to 2 times per day, and 43% reporting 3 to 4 times per day.
Two of the most important consumer segments for all products in the U.S. are the baby boomers, due to their size and current purchasing power, and the Millennials, who are poised to overtake the boomers in numbers and spending power by 2020.