50% of Spanish consumers stated that they have increased their consumption of healthy snacks. According to a study made by AINIAFORWARD, consumers have increased their consumption of healthy snacks for a variety of reasons: a growing concern for their own health; easier availability; losing weight; convenience; changes in consumption habits, and improved organoleptic qualities.
70% of consumers said that a healthy snack must be made with natural ingredients, such as fruit (73%), quinoa (55%), nut oil (almonds, walnuts, cashews, hazelnuts, 47%) and aloe vera (41%).
86% buy snacks more than once a week
Frequency of purchase and consumption of snacks is very high among consumers. According to AINIAFORWARD, 86% buy snacks several times a week. 62% of these people consume them several times a week, 23% on a daily basis, and 12% only once a week. Consumers prefer to eat healthy snacks between meal times, at mid-morning and mid-afternoon.
Crackers and dried-fruit snacks are consumed more frequently, 53% and 41% of the consumers, respectively, consumed these products on a daily basis. The least frequently consumed snacks are hummus (57%), guacamole (54%), the vegetable chips (54%), dried fruit (52%) and popcorn (49%).
Consumers want sustainable and biodegradable packaging
Consumers environmental awareness has increased. 58% of the consumers want the packaging of their healthy snacks to be recyclable, and 53% want it to be biodegradable. They also have a preference for individual formats due to different factors, such as convenience, better conservation, greater control of ingested calories, etc.
Natural ingredients for the development of innovative products
These data were presented at the 'Designing Ingredients for the Foods of the Future' conference that was recently held in AINIA's technology center, where the participants got to learn about the food sector's latest trends, ingredients, and technologies, such as micro-encapsulation or extrusion, that will help the sector develop the food of the future.
The preference for natural formulations, including vegetarian and vegan options, conditions the design of new foods and drinks. They should incorporate ingredients derived from plants, seeds, fruits, grains and vegetables in different formats (coconut, avocado and oatmeal, ice cream, butter and vegetable burgers, chocolate with spinach, or water with substances derived from plants, etc ..) to respond to the consumers' increased concern for healthcare and personal welfare.
Healthy foods and drinks for all
Healthy food should not be considered a luxury. Among the latest innovations, the food and beverage companies are working on the development of products that have functional properties that provide extra health benefits and have more competitive prices.
AINIAFORWARD conducts surveys on the consumers to better understand them, listening to what they have to say, identifying their deeper motivations, and observing their behavior and lifestyles. They analyze their behavior in their real environment with the use of noninvasive techniques to get to know them in their social and cultural context.
"The development of our own methodologies based on co-creation processes allows AINIAFORWARD to generate future scenarios and access the consumer's emotional state observing their behavior in new situations. This allows us to be a step ahead and anticipate the market, generating new product opportunities and strategies," said Cristina Jodar, Research & Account Manager.