THE HOTTEST SNACKING TRENDS: It might sound a bit crazy but who knows, crickets could be the next big thing
Next we asked our panel about the hottest snacking trends…
NIK INGERSOLL, Barnana: The thing that stood out for me at Expo West was a cricket protein bar, which seemed like a more sustainable way to get protein… and it tasted pretty good.
SHANE EMMETT, Health Warrior: We talk a lot about nutrient-dense plants… But I think the cricket flour trend is great too. It might sound a bit crazy but given our food challenges, who knows, it could be the next big thing.
JON SEBASTIANI, KRAVE: What we’re seeing now is this tremendous resurgence in the paleo diet and tons of innovation in meat snacks.
What’s changed… is also the wide variety of usage occasions, so where you’d traditionally see jerky in the gas station, we’re now seeing KRAVE on airlines, in the corporate cafeterias of Nike, facebook and Google, on college campuses and in hotel minibars. Meat snacks … are now widely being viewed as an alternative snack that’s better for you than a bag of pretzels or a bag of chips.
The meat snacks category is growing 20% year-on-year, so it’s outpacing the snacks market by five times, and I think we’ll start to see a wider variety of new shapes, sizes and forms.
KRAVE will enter the meat bar category this year by creating a protein-based meat bar. We believe that we can successfully enter the bar category because we will provide more protein with fewer carbohydrates and less sugar than other bars out there.