Snacking, in recent years, has become a regular part of consumer lives. The Hartman Group reports that snacking is not longer a “special treat” but the norm as Americans consume 2.3 snacks per day. According to a report by the NPD Group, snacking has become part of a healthy eating lifestyle with consumers who eat healthy snacking twice as often as those with less healthy diets. Consumers are demanding snacks that fit their healthy, on-the-go, busy lifestyle.

Snack packs provide on-the-go meals

According to the Snacking in America report from Hartman Group, Americans not only love to snack, but they also use snacks as meal replacements. In fact, 16% of Americans reported snacking because they didn’t “feel like cooking or preparing a meal.” Go Picnic has created the perfect package for this type of snacking culture. The Go Picnic ready-to-eat meal box combines five cross-brand snacks in a convenient, easy to transport box. Inside the Go Picnic box, each snack is individually-wrapped, which allows consumers to use all the snacks as one meal or snack throughout the day. By packaging the snacks this way, Go Picnic also allows each product to retain its own branding. Many of the products are available to consumers outside of the Go Picnic box.

 The package lends itself to the on-the-go lifestyle. The paperboard box is about the size of a paperback book, which makes it easy to grab and go. For those choosing to snack from the box all day, it can be reclosed with a simple tab system. Because no refrigeration is required, the package can go anywhere, including a picnic as the brand name suggests.

Go Picnic also took their snack boxes to a higher level by hitting on many major snacking trends. More than half (57%) of respondents in the Snacking in America study said it was important or very important to have a healthy snack. Go Picnic makes it easy for customers to determine the healthfulness of their snacks by providing only snacks that are free of trans fats, high fructose corn syrup and added MSG. As free-from diets become more popular, consumers demand clear packaging that allows them to quickly find the product that fit their needs. Go Picnic also labels every box with allergy information letting consumers know which meals fit their dietary needs such as gluten-free, vegan or kosher.

The Go Picnic package also adds fun to meal and snack time for kids of all ages. The package features appetizing artwork of the food on the front with a breakdown of each snack-sized offering inside. The inside of the box continues the experience with fun food facts and activities like a Sudoku puzzle. All of this is accented by a colorful gingham picnic blanket motif.

Healthier treats take to snack packaging with kid appeal

Go Picnic isn’t the only healthy snack food capitalizing on conveniences and the kid-friendly market with vibrant packages. Decas Cranberry Company recently launched single-serve dried cranberry snack packs with Funny Face characters aimed at the children’s market. According to Decas CEO Chuck Dillon, they had seen many snacks offering very little nutritional value targeting children by using fun cartoon characters. Decas sought to create the kind of product that would be both healthy and fun. The .75-ounce pouches work well as grab and go snacks and come in 6-pack pouches.

Convenience comes home

Convenience is not reserved only for on-the-go packaging. It’s also handy for the busy party host and at-home snacker. Cheez-It® recently launched Slam Dunk Bags just in time for March Madness. The 24-ounce quad seal, side-gusseted pouch opens across the top with a peel and reseal face panel. This packaging innovation allows for easy snacking and serving without placing the product into a bowl, meaning that the product remains with its branding while it is being served. CP Flexible Packaging provides the patent pending pouch and Archbold Container Corporation provides the retail ready display case. The Slam Dunk Bag is the first shareable pouch for Cheez-It® designed for easy entertaining and is currently available in Cheez-It® Original and Cheez-It® White Cheddar flavors. 

Snacks still indulge

While convenience and health are among the top snacking trends, consumers aren’t all about health. The Hartman group reports that 28% of American’s turn to snacks for an indulgent treat. McLean Design found a way to bring together indulgence, comfort and high-end appeal with Dibella Baking Company treats.

For more than 100 years, the DiBella family recipes have been handed down from generation to generation. Now, great grandmother Josephine, matriarch of this baking family, has been enshrined in the family’s new premium brand mark, and her authentic Old World recipes are now being made available to consumers around the world.

With the story of a loving family baking together across generations, McLean Design sought to build that richness and history into the brand and packaging, so its virtues would be obvious at a glance. The brand mark honors the family’s long and storied narrative with period flourishes, coins covering five eras, “Family Recipes” declared front and center in the family’s native Italian, and Josephine’s likeness presiding over all of it.

The black and gold pin-striped packaging denotes a premium experience with natural light photography of its delightful treats paired with provocative descriptions of its wholesome ingredients.

Sales materials, web site, and trade show signage helped drive awareness of this fledgling brand in
a crowded and competitive category. The overall effect highlights the DiBella family history of baking with love, which permeates these authentic Italian indulgences.

From healthy groupings to convenient packages to high-end indulgences, the current snack food packaging has to tell a clear story quickly so busy consumers can make quick decisions while shopping. The packages must also incorporate the grab-and-go convenience for this busy, on-the-go world.