Fruit and chocolate
This category is growing by 10.5%, making it the fastest growing sack category, according to Mars representatives attending the Expo. New items for the company include Dove dark chocolate with real cherries, blueberries and cranberries in the center.
Caramel
The NCA said caramel is coming back in a big ways on their own or as inclusions in other products. Nostalgia is another major motivator in candy buying, which makes childhood favorites like Slo Pokes and Black Cows right on trend.
Sweet and spicy
Consumers love their food spicy, and that includes chocolate. Hot sauce maker Tabasco has been selling a spicy chocolate bar on its website, and are now making it available in retail settings.
Eye candy
Wrigley and Mars developed new LED enhanced candy displays to catch customers’ attention at check out. Tested for a year by Winn-Dixie, Mars representatives said the displays increased sales 10% to 12%.
Eye candy 2
The LED displays are also available of self-checkout lanes. Mars representatives said that A&P would be the first retailer to implement the new candy and gum displays.
Chocolate
Always a favorite, sales for chocolate continue to climb. Mintel predicts that sales will climb another 14% by 2018.
Small is big
Small is big. Mini sizes of favorite candy, like York Peppermint Patties, helps with portion control. The unwrapped candies in resealable bags also make for easy sharing and carrying.
Photo courtesy of Hershey’s
Gums
New products are attempting to put the gas back into gum sales. Juicy Fruit now comes in chews and, for the first time, in bubble gum. Another innovation is dissolving chewing gum.
See more photos from the show: Snack trends