Has the Bubble Burst? Bubble Gum, That Is.

Gum sales continue to decline, as mints steal market share.

July 16, 2014

NEW YORK – As stocks creep ever higher and spark bubble concerns, one other bubble appears to be popping: the gum market.

CNBC reports that during the past five years, U.S. gum volume has shrunk by a fifth, according to a new report from Rabobank. According to NACS State of the Industry data, gum sales declined 7.4% in 2013 from 2012. (For more information, see the May NACS Magazine Category Close-Up on Candy and Gum.)

So, what's causing the rapid decline in gunm-chewing? The major driver appears to be the rise in mint sales, which increased almost 20% during the past five years, according to Rabobank. Still, the total category's sales still lags the size of gum.

Lower interest in gum among young consumers and a shift toward natural labels and away from the complicated ingredient lists of many products have compounded the gum market's woes.

"In an age where natural and clean labels are the ticket to success, the ingredients label of your typical pack of sugar-free gum sounds more like an alchemist's shopping list: sorbitol, gum base, maltitol, mannitol, hydrolysed starch hydrolysate, artificial and natural flavorings, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, sucralose, butylated hydroxytoluene, titanium dioxide, etc," says the Rabobank report.

High prices and too many launches have also caused confused consumers to retreat, according to the report.  vfeWhile Rabobank says sales at gum market heavyweights Mars and Mondelez suffered last year, Hershey sales grew in 2013 to total 3% of the market.

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