CHICAGO – The typical American eats more than 1,000 snack-oriented convenience foods throughout the year, and kids and teens are the heaviest users of this assortment of snacks, which include fresh fruit, sweet, and savory snacks, reports The NPD Group, a leading global information company. Women eat, on average, 3.1 snack-oriented convenience foods a day compared to the 2.7 snacks men eat a day, according to NPD’s snacking research.

“An individual’s mood and situation has a strong effect on what will be snacked on,” said Darren Seifer, NPD food and beverage industry analyst, in a press release. “Connecting your marketing messages to the emotional nature of snacking – think taste, cravings and indulgence — will help drive your product’s selection. 

About eight of every 10 in-home snack food eatings are considered to be a snack-oriented convenience food versus other foods, regardless of time of day, finds NPD’s SnackTrack. During a typical year, there are more than 356 billion eatings of snack-oriented convenience foods.

Among the top ten motivators for selecting a particular snack are: “like the taste,” “was hungry,” “had a craving,” “favorite snack,” and “was simple and easy to eat,” according to SnackTrack. While taste is the leading motivator across all age groups, women are more likely to select snack foods to satisfy specific expectations (i.e. chocolate, sweet, crunchy, healthy) while kids’ favorite snacks are simply fun to eat.

Fresh fruit, chocolate, potato chips, cookies, and yogurt are, in rank order, the top five snack-oriented convenience foods consumed annually. Millennials are driving the snacking trend, with their penchant for the "fourth meal." Read more about "Midnight Snacking" in the December issue of NACS Magazine.