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10 Candy Trends
Each year, Distribution Channels takes a look at the trends shaping the candy industry. What’s new, hot, sweet, interactive and simply candy-rific!
By Traci Carneal
After a brief dip in sales in 2001, the candy industry made a strong comeback in 2002 with sales increasing 1.6 percent. That may not sound like much, but last year manufacturers produced 6.9 billion pounds of confections, up 2.7 percent, and consumers ate 23.9 pounds of candy on average (11.6 pounds of it was chocolate, which indicates a 4.5 percent increase). On average, consumers made $84.34 worth of candy purchases last year, and they chewed an average of 1.7 pounds of gum.
These figures from the U.S. Department of Commerce paint a sweet picture of one of America’s favorite past-times – consuming confections.
According to the National Confectioners Association, Vienna, VA, 1,401 new confectionery products were introduced in 2002:
Chocolate: 639
Non-Chocolate: 640
Gum: 72
Other: 50
Anyone who visited the candy trade shows this year knows that 2003 appears to be keeping pace with 2002 activity. The variety and innovation in products abounds in all categories. And retailers love the candy category for their own reasons – it makes twice as much profit on every dollar sold than any other packaged good.
While there are many trends in the candy category, the Distribution Channels’ staff has selected the following 10 to highlight. Read on and take note!
1. Convenience
Experts in every industry can point to convenience as a driving factor in formulating today’s new products and services. Consumers, with increasingly busy lifestyles and a desire for quick, tasty solutions, are looking for convenience in all aspects of their life – and candy appears to be no exception.
Making it easier to consume candy in the car is a common theme for many new product introductions or reformulations.
In the chocolate category, Hershey Foods Corp. introduced new To Go! products, of which the logo is designed with a traffic light illustration. Hershey’s simply reengineered the size and shape of its traditional products, and repackaged them more conveniently. To Go! products are available in Reese’s Bites, York Peppermint Bites, Kit Kat Bites, Whoppers, and Mini Kisses.
The products are promoted as "convenient and easy, portable and already unwrapped for easy snacking!"
Following the lead of snack manufacturers that have developed portable, convenient size containers for their products, candy creators are coming out with similar types of packaging to appeal to on-the-go consumers.
Hershey just introduced Swoops, solid chocolate slice shapes that come in a 3.78-oz. canister with three on-the-go cups. The cups can fit into a car cup holder and is easily portable.
Family Sweets Candy Co. offers new Gummies on the Go, a resealable package of gummy treats that fits into travel bags, car cup holders, purses and even backpacks. The product is available in gummy bears, gummy worms, and sour neon gummy worms, with each cup featuring a travel game for kids.
2. Diet/Healthful
Fueled by popularity of the Atkins diet and a health-conscious uprising in America, products that are low in fat, carbs, sugar and calories are hitting retail shelves at lightening speed. Whether it’s baby boomers watching their waistlines, diabetics or parents seeking healthier options for their children, manufacturers are working to appeal to the growing number of consumers concerned about health.
ACNielsen reports that in 2002, diet candies grew the fastest, claiming 23 percent of the $24 billion candy market.
Such new product introductions include Sinfully Delicious by Innovative Candy Concepts. This line of 12 bite-size dessert flavors are fat free, sugar free and have only eight calories for four pieces. Hershey came out with sugar-free versions of its Hershey’s and Reese’s miniatures. By using lactitol, a sugar substitute, Hershey was able to make them 19 percent lower in calories.
Both companies are promoting their products as "diabetic friendly." This is considered a huge trend in food products, especially candy.
Asher’s offers Sugar Free Bars made with Maltitol, a sweetener also suitable for those on sugar-restricted and/or low-sodium diets as well as those counting carbs. Brown & Haley added Sugar-Free Almond Roca to its line of Almond Roca Buttercrunch. Simply Lite introduced seven new items featuring lower carbohydrates.
3. Nostalgic
Those pining for days of yore can travel to their local convenience or specialty store to find some of the same candy their grandparents bought when they were young. Peppermint sticks, Clove gum, toffee, peanut brittle and caramels are just a few of these nostalgic treats that have maintained their popularity over the years and are being repackaged and reformulated.
Cadbury Adams brought back its vintage gum brands line this summer – Black Jack®, Beeman’s® and Clove® went national in September. Cadbury offers the line periodically, and each time demand exceeds supply.
According to a USA Today article, Halloween candy buyers don’t want new tricks when it comes to buying candy. It’s the old chocolate brands that remain their favorites, "regardless of the 891 new candy varieties introduced so far this year," the article states.
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Favorite Treats
Market share for top brands of snack-size Halloween candy (2001 sales):
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| Name |
Percent |
| Snickers |
14 |
| Reese’s Cups |
13 |
| Kit Kat |
11 |
| Milky Way |
6 |
| M&M’s |
6 |
| Source: Information Resources Inc. |
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The familiar brands drive about 10 percent of the annual candy sales at Halloween, and one-third of the $6.9 billion in Halloween spending, according to the newspaper.
4. Carmel
Also a nostalgic item, caramels are popping up everywhere. Got Milk? Caramels are fortified with calcium, Vitamins A, C, D and E, plus iron. Goetze’s launched a newly designed 5-oz. bag of Caramel Creams.
There’s caramel apple pops, turtles with caramel, caramel popcorn, and much more. Marketers are offering huge assortments through their online shopping networks, so c-stores are competing with the Internet for the consumers’ dollar in the chocolates and caramels categories.
5. Chocolate
This is a no-brainer, right? Just two years ago Distribution Channels featured a story on the chocolate category that stressed flat sales and lack of excitement in the industry. Boy, times have changed. As the statistics mentioned earlier show, as well as the new, innovative product introductions and reformulations of classic items, chocolate is making a comeback.
Even Jelly Belly has developed a new bean that is half jelly bean and half chocolate in 20 flavors. Called JBz, Food industry guru Phil Lempert gave the product rave reviews on the Today show and said "they’re really very good!" JBz have a crunchy shell similar to M&M’s.
And the first chocolate-flavored gum has been introduced, which is sugar free and low fat. That should be interesting….
Nestlé introduced more flavors to its Signature line of products, Nestle Treasures. The new Strawberries and Crème Treasures are shaped like miniature chocolate treasure chests filled with a blend of strawberries and cream.
6. Funky, Fun Promotions
As if making a cool, wacky product weren’t enough, today’s marketers are spreading the word about their offerings through innovative – and just plain fun – promotions.
Mentos, the chewy mint, can now be found in bathrooms in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver. Dispenser units in the shape of females are being placed in the men’s restrooms, and male-shaped units are in the women’s rooms. According to manufacturer Perfetti Van Melle, the strategy is designed to target the young adult segment of the population.
Bringing flashbacks of the Oscar Meyer Weinermobile™, which is still making appearances, Just Born Inc. has had two Peeps buses tour the entire country in 2003. The bus concept, featuring Scholastic programs to promote fun craft ideas using Peeps at schools, were developed as part of the Peeps 50th Anniversary celebration this year.
Speaking of the Weinermobile™, anyone interested in driving one can become a "Hotdogger" by applying through an Oscar Meyer web site. Those who drive the Hershey Kiss Mobile around are considered "Chocolate Ambassadors."
Another innovative marketer is Innovative Candy Concepts, a company that possesses a "think out of the box" mentality. ICC’s promotions are centered on the idea that candy should be fun – for consumers as well as distributors and retailers. Their trade show booths are often a highlight, with a light display and entertainment designed to attract buyers.
7. Unique Gums
With all the interest in low-calorie foods and candies, gum is no exception. In fact, sugarless gum represents 64 percent of the category. Also on the rise are breath-freshening gums, mirroring the growing popularity of mints.
Mentos NewCharge gum is a "microgum," small in size, allowing consumers to control the size of the gum piece and breath-freshening strength that they need. The larger trend emerging is that people want things their way, and this gum reflects that need to customize the gum experience.
Also big are new, innovative flavors. From cotton-candy bubble gum to tropical fruit mixes and intensely hot or sour flavors, unique is the norm.
The Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. recently introduced Stay Alert, a caffeinated gum that allows the mouth’s oral membrane to absorb the caffeine, rather than the digestive system.
In terms of packaging, Blister packs are the craze, along with anything that adds play-value to the product. For example, Ford Gum & Machine has developed Poppets, character-adorned dispensers similar to a Pez.
8. Hard Candy
Whether it’s lollipops, candy dipped in power, or traditional, individually wrapped candies, the harder the better. (Life Savers® research indicates that the majority of the candy-consuming population in the United States are suckers, rather than chewers, so this shouldn’t be so surprising.)
Hard candy with a twist is making a splash on retail shelves. There are lollipops with gum or soft, chewy candy centers, or baby bottles and other candies that are dipped into a flavored powder before eaten. The Juicy Drop Pop from Topps leads the consumer to drop liquid candy into the center of a rectangular pop. Rolly Pops by Swell/Philadelphia Chewing Co., which resemble roll-on deodorant, won the Mexican 2002 New Product of the Year Honors.
Consumers are demanding flavors that go beyond the basics, while offering enhanced health benefits. Peerless Confections unveiled All Natural Candies with no artificial colors or flavors in Ginger, Coffee, Mint, Honey Queen Bees, Honey Sesame Sticks and Fruit Mix.
Joel, Inc. introduced a new line of organic hard candy in Vienna Roast Coffee, Chocolate Mint, Caramel, Strawberry & Cream and Luscious Lemon.
9. Seasonal
Holiday-themed candy continues to grow by leaps and bounds. One of the biggest trends has been the repackaging of national brands – pastel M&M’s, red and green foil Hershey Kisses, or Hot Tamales in a box decorated like a Christmas present. But not just the large companies are getting a piece of the seasonal pie--even the smaller companies can be innovative and create signature products.
If Just Born Inc., known for its Marshmallow Peeps, is any indication at all, seasonal is clearly becoming more of a year-round event. The company turns out 4.2 million Peeps a day, and even considers summer a seasonal opportunity.
The R.M. Palmer Co. has expanded a great deal in the seasonal area, with some of its latest products including Dr. Scab’s Monster Lab, an assortment of Halloween-themed chocolate novelties, such as eyeballs, mouths, ears and fingers.
10. Your Trend Here
Did we miss an emerging trend that deserves mention? Please e-mail us and share your trend with us. We may print it in a future issue of Distribution Channels.
E-mail: tracic@awmanet.org
2750 Prosperity Ave., Suite 530, Fairfax, VA 22031
Traci Carneal is editor-in-chief of Distribution Channels magazine.
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