SNACKS

In fact, Human Nature says it is on a mission to make delicious plant-based snacks that support social and environmental causes through every purchase of their goods. With every bag sold, Human Nature will plant a mangrove tree thanks to its collaboration with Eden Reforestation Project. Each pack is also illustrated by the world-renowned artist Bodil Jane, who herself is a keen supporter of social and environmental causes.

“As a food company, we are always looking to find ways to become more sustainable, making net-positive snacking the norm. In fact, every time that a bag of our 100g vegan snacks is purchased, we plant a tree, and this is very important for the reforestation of the planet,” Bobby Patel continues.

“This means that with every crunch people will offset more (308kg per tree Co2 removed over a tree’s lifespan) than the environmental impact each pack emits (approx. 0.2kg per pack). In fact, even the plastic used to make the packs (till a better alternative is found) will be offset by removing ocean-bound plastic from the planet’s most polluted waters.

“Social media has also played a significant role in shaping eating habits. Our vegan snacks appeal to these generations and we love working with many influencers who promote healthy products on platforms such as Instagram and TikTok.

“Since our mission is to make delicious plant-based foods that support social and environmental causes, we are also developing a vegan seaweed crisps range which is going to be HFSS compliant, high in protein, and high in fibre too. To offset its impact, we remove plastic bottles from oceans recovering five times more plastic than what we use in our packaging.”

Ready To Capitalise

Crisps, snacks and nuts as a whole is a fast growing, priority category with huge scale, claim sector supplier, KP Snacks, who have looked at the market data and have some advice and insight to help operators boost their sales.

“Food to go remains an important mission and driver of crisps, snacks and nuts sales,” says Matt Collins, trading director, KP Snacks.

“The food to go market is rebounding and outlets should be ready to capitalise on this by stocking a strong core crisps, snacks and nuts range to drive sales.

“At KP Snacks, we are continuing to excite and interrupt with flavoursome innovation, having the right brands in the right formats, meeting changing shopper missions as needs adapt, and building brand equity by doing the right thing. This means that we are focused on acting in a more socially responsible way in every part of the business, whether it be through packaging reductions, healthier products, and promoting healthier lifestyles.”

There are approximately 323,287 (Lumina Intelligence 2021 data) different outlets that serve approximately 9.8bn (MCA HIM Food to Go Market Report 2019) out of home occasions per year in the UK, with the out of home occasion expected to be worth £91.9bn, exceeding its prepandemic value of £91.3bn (Lumina Intelligence 2021 data), observe the brand.

When buying food to go, 31.9% shoppers buy crisps and snacks (Lumina Intelligence, CTP Average w/e 09.01.22). As the number one driver of the Bagged Snacks category according to Nielsen IQ, Total Coverage, Bagged Snacks Value, MAT 29.01.22 data, KP Snacks feels that it is perfectly positioned to help outlets bolster food to go sales, offering a broad portfolio of snacks with ‘something for everyone’.

Make The Most Of Meal Deals

“Weekday lunchtimes are the most popular time for eating on the go, with 62% of consumers saying they enjoy picking meal deal combos,” says Matt Collins.

“Thus, outlets should ensure they maximise on this critical opportunity, bolstering meal deal sales by stocking the right range of familiar and trusted big brands that customers recall, recognise, and trust.

“Our McCoy’s and Hula Hoops Grab Bags, for example, fulfil a hunger fill mission for those looking for a bigger eat. A family favourite, Hula Hoops is worth £151.3m and is growing in value (Nielsen IQ, Total Coverage, Total Value, MAT 10.09.22) and Hula Hoops Big Hoops BBQ Beef takes the number one spot for best-selling Meal Deal choice (Nielsen, Total Coverage, Bagged Snacks Value, MAT 11.09.21).

Meanwhile, KP Snacks’ McCoy’s can claim to be the UK’s number one ridged crisp brand, with McCoy’s Salt & Vinegar and Flame Grilled Steak being in the number two and number three best-selling Meal Deal choices respectively (Nielsen IQ, Total Coverage, Bagged Snacks Value, MAT 09.10.21).

Refuel And Revive

‘Tide me over’ is an increasingly important on the go snacking opportunity, feel KP Snacks. Whether it’s during the school run or evening commute, 69% of consumers snack at least once a day and 64% of consumers eat snacks to keep their energy up throughout the day (Mintel, February 2022 data).

“While tasty snacks are a hugely important part of this mission, we’re seeing an uplift in healthy snacking sales as shoppers look for a permissible energy boost throughout the day. According to insight from a 2021 Kantar Health Study, outlets should ensure they offer tasty ‘better for you’ options to drive sales, with health playing a factor in 28% of lunch occasions,” adds Matt Collins.

“Nuts have been excluded from HFSS legislation because of their natural and functional benefits. The nuts category is seeing huge growth and, packed with protein and fibre which is highlighted through its labelling, KP Nuts leads the category as the number one Nut brand at more than four times bigger than the nearest branded competitor, worth £81.9M RSV (according to Nielsen IQ, Total Coverage, Total Value, MAT 10.09.22 data).”

Driving Sales

Outlets can give themselves the best possible opportunity to drive crisps, snacks and nuts sales by following a few simple tips, propose KP Snacks.

“Offer the right range and cater for all customer missions. Weekday lunchtimes are the most popular time for eating out (with one in three shoppers purchasing Food to Go at lunchtime according to Lumina Intelligence, CTP Average w/e 09.01.22), so it’s important to have the right products, at the right price and in the right place to help maximise your sales. Make sure to excite and interrupt with NPD and innovation to entice consumers. 53% (Lumina Intelligence, CTP Average w/e 09.01.22) of impulse crisps and snacks are picked up in secondary locations,” says Matt Collins.

“Create value by understanding customer expectations, whether that be through premium or value offerings. 53% (IGD Shopper Vista Food-To-Go, Q1 2021-Q2 2021) of shoppers look for meal deals when buying food to go and 34% (Harris Interactive, November 2019 data) of shoppers would pay more than £5 for meal deals if the products were high quality. Value can also be created through perfect pairings.

“Bring stock to life through theatre, display and activation to inspire and engage, with effective merchandising and POS. Position your snacks with high visibility to encourage customers to create bigger baskets.”