The new school year is a big deal for all children as they start school for the first time or move forward into a new class.
Parents often use the lunch box moment to bring their children a reassuring taste of home in the middle of the school day.
Wholesalers are reflecting the wider world when choosing stock. Their customers will be wanting to deliver what the consumer wants, so it is important that wholesalers keep up with consumer trends.
Matt Grenter, Sales Manager, Brioche Pasquier, comments: “Trends are hard to determine in such a volatile time, but one trend which is likely to overshadow all others for the next few months is value for money.
Consumers will want to be buying the best food they can for their children while also making sure it is economical and long lasting. The old-fashioned virtues of thrift and no waste are back in vogue.”
Brioche Pasquier’s long-lasting Brioche products which are made without preservatives make it easier for families to plan healthier meals and reduce waste. All its products are realistically priced and with their 21-day shelf life are unlikely to go stale before they are eaten.
Parents making lunchboxes at home like to have security of supply for at least a week on their shelves so there is no Friday panic with nothing to put in the box.
Brioche Pasquier’s packaging is also practical, for example, its PITCH products come in packs of four or six, and its Croissants are twin wrapped in packs of six. This means the elements within will remain fresh in their individual packing, so there can always be a brioche snack on the shelf.
“Our PITCH chocolate snack brioche were our most popular products before the pandemic, and they have continued to gain traction since,” adds Grenter. “Children love them and they are very popular for snacks on the go, with the individual packaging make them a quick and easy sweet treat to pop in a pocket for an after school or sport boost.”
PITCH can offer a more wholesome alternative to a chocolate bar or a packet of crisps, especially when, like all Brioche Pasquier products, they are baked with recognisable whole ingredients like fresh eggs from uncaged hens, flour and butter. They come individually wrapped in packs of four or six so there is no need for waste.
Brioche Rolls complement any type of filling, and because of their slightly sweet taste, add a unique flavour which makes a sandwich special.
For new products and to drive brand penetration, Brioche Pasquier regularly uses in-store promotions to support our product range. In 2021 the brand built on the success of a previous collaboration with the most successful animation franchise of all-time, Illumination’s Minions, giving customers the chance to win thousands of instant-win Minions goodies.
This year, Minions is featured on packs of Brioche Rolls, Brioche Rolls Choc Chip, and PITCH Chocolate. Prizes include a Glamping Trip and a huge Retro-Party Pack complete with all the essentials for a party to remember. There are also thousands of smaller prizes to win.
All the prizes can be won by entering the competition online and entering a pack code. Winners will know in an instant if they have won a smaller prize and everyone will automatically be entered into a prize draw for the big prizes.
Brioche rolls are increasingly popular as an alternative to bread. They have a soft texture and slightly sweet taste which children love and Brioche Rolls are perfectly sized for small hands.
They are a practical choice for parents too as a pack bought at the beginning of the week will be just as fresh by the end. In fact, they will last for 21 days, thus minimising waste, an important factor in these worrying times of rising prices, grain shortages and environmental concerns.
Making lunchboxes can be a challenging chore for parents. Not only do they have to stick to school guidelines on healthy eating, they also have to provide a lunch that their children will actually eat. They know that a soft, buttery Brioche Roll is going to please even the pickiest child.
Parents are bombarded with different health messages from all sides. They of course have the interests of their children in mind, and want to provide a nutritionally sound lunch if at all possible. Clean labelling is an increasingly important factor in their decision making. Additives like preservatives, unhealthy fats, artificial flavourings and colourings all signal a red light to those who want to eat simple, clean bakery products.
Matt Smith, Marketing Director for Tayto Group, comments: “Taste is the main reason for purchasing snacks – and healthier snacks have a credibility challenge – as many consumers don’t believe that they will taste as good. Especially when considering snacks for kids, they have to be ‘worth the calories’. For snacks, reducing fat and salt to meet the HFSS guidelines often means compromising too much on taste – and consumers will vote with their feet.”
Golden Wonder is famous for its flavours and only launches healthier products if they still deliver ‘more punch per crunch’. Through recipe innovation it has overcome this challenge and created Ringos Puffs – a non-HFSS product that doesn’t compromise on taste and that enables retailers to stock Puffs anywhere in-store, given the location restrictions will go ahead as planned this October.
The one-year delay to multi-buy restrictions enables Tayto to continue working on reformulating its Fun Snacks range (that includes Tangy Toms and Spicy Bikers), to become HFSS compliant and still maintain the highly successful multi-buy offer that has helped it outperform the market.
“Ringos Puffs was all about creating a non-HFSS product that didn’t compromise on taste,” adds Smith. “We’re not marketing it as ‘healthier’ as consumers are more interested in taste than health – and HFSS is a trade not consumer issue. Early sales are saying that we got this right with people picking it up another great-tasting Golden Wonder snack – not because they believe it is healthy!”
Ringos Puffs is available in BBQ and Sweet Chilli flavours in 3 formats – perfect for lunchboxes and sharing: 20g – RRP 49p; £1 PMP – 60g; 6pk x 16g – RRP £1.50 – and has successfully secured a number of listings in both multiples and wholesale.
As with the entire Ringos range, both Ringos of Fire and Ringos Puffs have less than 100 calories per serving which makes them perfect for those looking for a little treat. And by delivering Golden Wonder’s legendary ‘more punch per crunch’ they will not disappoint.
Tapping into continuing consumer interest in spicy flavours, Golden Wonder has launched a Spicy Thai Ringos into its successful £1 PMP range that is outperforming the market (+26% vs +17%, IRI).
Smith says: “With a real spicy kick and less than 100 calories per serving like the rest of the Ringos range, Spicy Thai delivers on the Golden Wonder’s brand promise of more punch per crunch.”
Wayne Thompson, Business Unit Controller, OOH at FrieslandCampina, comments: “YAZOO is the UK’s number one traditional flavoured milk brand and is a £74m brand (IRI). We have great awareness with consumers – we continue to perform strongly and outgrow the flavoured milk category.
“Consumers recognise our packaging, and they know where they can find us in stores. Even with the change of occasions, we are still seeing growth as shoppers are more likely to try new variants and formats from brands they already know, love and ultimately trust.”
YAZOO is now the biggest flavoured milk brand in terms of online sales – this has risen from £3.4m to £5.2m in the past year.
The brand’s ongoing partnership with Merlin, with its 2-4-1 on-pack promotion for popular parks including Alton Towers, played a role in driving success in 2021, and this collaboration continues in 2022.
YAZOO is free from artificial sweeteners, flavours, or colours, high in protein and is a source of calcium and Vitamin B2, meaning it offers nutritional benefits that most of its competitors in the soft drinks category cannot.
With its calcium, protein, and vitamin B12 health credentials, and containing the same natural sugar levels as a semi-skimmed glass of milk, it is an essential product in any healthier eating and drinking offering.
YAZOO KiDS has a completely unique no added sugar or artificial sweeteners recipe. The brand is also part of the ‘Better Health Food Scanner App’ campaign, with all flavours, including the recently approved chocolate variety, holding the ‘Good Choice’ badge – making it easier for parents to make healthier choices for their children. All the cocoa used in YAZOO KiDS Chocolate is also Rainforest Alliance approved. Chocolate remains the most popular flavour across the market, with over 50% market share (IRI), but YAZOO’s strawberry flavour performs about as well as that.
“We’re into our fifth year of limited-edition flavours – these products can create a sense of exclusivity and contribute to brand longevity in the long run, as shoppers are more likely to try new variants and formats from brands they already know, love and ultimately trust. However, classic flavours like chocolate, strawberry and banana will always stand the test of time,” adds Thompson.
“These are the flavours that consumers have engaged with the longest, across most food and drink, and they form the basis of the relationship between shoppers and brands. People know what to expect and the reputation of the flavour has already attracted a fan base.”
The brand relaunched one of its best-selling Limited-Edition flavours due to consumer demand – Choc Caramel. The latest Limited-Edition release follows the success of YAZOO’s Jaffalicious Choc Orange, which it will replace. The citrus flavour was a huge hit with consumers, delivering upwards of £1.23m incremental sales to the category.
Kate Needham, Marketing Director at Burton’s Biscuit Company, comments: “Convenience retailers can tap into the £83.6m Lunchbox Minis category, growing by £13.4m since 2019, by stocking the market leading Minis range from Burton’s Biscuits – worth £26.6M experiencing YoY growth of +29% (Nielsen).”
The size of the prize for convenience retailers shouldn’t be under-estimated. With Mini Biscuits (+14%) significantly outperforming the Sweet Biscuits category (Nielsen), those who look upon them as a nice to stock rather than a core offering are missing out on a major sales opportunity. Burton’s advises retailers to consider adding Mini variants of well-known brands to the biscuit fixture to add incremental sales.
The Lunchbox Minis category, which includes household favorites such as Maryland Minis and Foxes Mini Party Rings, is growing 14% YoY and performing significantly ahead of Sweet Biscuits (Nielsen).
The brands in growth within the category have contributed an additional £9.9m RSV to Lunchbox Minis in the last year, with Maryland Minis driving the highest growth +£3.4M (Nielsen). The top performing Lunchbox Minis brands, including Maryland Minis (+29%) and Dodger Minis (+19%) are all seeing gains from shoppers switching from other brands and biscuit formats, and continue to grow ahead of the category (Nielsen).
As is to be expected, consumption of Lunchbox Minis accelerated rapidly once lockdown restrictions began to ease, with the return of the school lunchbox and after school treating occasions. While children remain the core consumer for Minis, and taste preferences remains the primary factor in decision making for parents, there is an uplift in consumption by younger adults (16-34-year-olds) contributing to the 14% YoY growth of the category.
Matt Collins, Trading Director at KP Snacks, comments: “As the summer holidays draw to a close, retailers should be ready to boost sales by capitalising on the back to school opportunity. Retailers should stock the right range of products with the right promotions in place to prepare for back to school shoppers. With two in five kids’ lunchboxes containing a bagged snack (Kantar), maximising on this occasion is a critical opportunity to drive CSN sales.”
Health remains a top priority and parents will be cautious when purchasing snacks for lunchboxes, seeking out healthier options. KP Snacks offers a wide ranging portfolio of tasty, high quality snacks, which now includes 32 products that are 100 calories or less per pack, including POM-BEAR, Hula Hoops Puft, Skips, popchips and Space Raiders.
“We believe that snacks can be enjoyed as part of a balanced lifestyle, and we are continuously working to provide snacks that are both delicious and permissible,” adds Collins. “By the time HFSS legislation on positioning comes into play in October, over 100 SKUs and a quarter of the KP Snacks portfolio will be non-HFSS, making it one of the most comprehensive non-HFSS ranges available.”
Worth £23.8m RSV (Nielsen), the POM-BEAR brand is the perfect choice for family shoppers who account for 25% of the on-the-go shopper base (HIM). With 15% of households currently avoiding gluten and wheat (Mintel), the light and crispy melt-in-the-mouth crisp is a perfect gluten and guilt-free snack for lunchboxes. POM-BEAR contains fewer than 100 calories per pack, with 5.7m households consuming the brand every year (Kantar). Household names like POM-BEAR reassure parents that they are providing their children with a healthy and great tasting product from a trusted brand.
Growing at +8.8% (Nielsen), Hula Hoops Puft is another popular permissible snack option, enjoying a loyal repeat rate of 60% (Kantar). 66% of consumers say they try to choose healthier snacks (Mintel) and Hula Hoops Puft is a great choice for a tasty and healthier snacking option. Worth £10.6m RSV, Hula Hoops Puft has been reformulated with tasty non-HFSS Salt & Vinegar, Salted and Grilled Beef flavours being rolled out. Puft is a consumer favourite and, since its launch, the Hula Hoops brand has seen a rise in RSV by +7.8%, demonstrating the demand for healthier options (Nielsen).
As a part of its ‘Taste for Good’ commitment, KP Snacks has been working on improving the health credentials of its products for a number of years. As a result, 80% of KP Snacks’ product portfolio currently contains less than 4g of saturated fat per 100g, 69% of the portfolio contains less than 5g of sugar per 100g and, since the 2018 pledge, there has been a 2.72% salt reduction across the total range. The brand has continued to remove artificial flavours, sweeteners and colours from all of our products. Consumers are also enabled to make informed decisions with KP Snacks highlighting attributes such as high fibre content, Gluten Free and good source of protein on packs.
Choosing the perfect at-school or after school snack is a tough decision for parents. In an ocean of confusing mixed messages on what constitutes a ‘healthy’ lunchbox, Public Health England’s Change4Life campaign,which recommends two 100 calories snacks a day maximum, acts as a beacon of lucidity.
Neil Stewart, Cathedral City Marketing Controller at Saputo Dairy UK, comments: “Calories have been a long-standing marker of what constitutes a healthy snack, as advocated by the 2018 PHE Change4Life programme which promotes the idea of 100-calorie snacks. Products that support this, such as our Cathedral City Minis and kids’ Cathedral City Nibbles, which offer a 100% natural snack that is high in protein, a source of calcium and contains fewer than 100kcals per portion have a real opportunity to capitalise on this momentum.”
Indeed, cheese has a strong association with kids’ snacking as part of a balanced diet and is a mainstay of lunchbox snacks given to children, with 65% of parents thinking it a ‘good snack option for their kids’ (Kantar).
Andy Lewis, Marketing Controller at Sunmagic Juices, comments:“A lasting legacy of the Covid-19 pandemic is that consumers have become increasingly aware of their own health and wellness. As we have emerged from the pandemic into a ‘new normal,’ parents have become more aware of their family’s health as well as their own, and want to ensure their children get as many nutrients, antioxidants and vitamins as possible.”
Another key consideration for parents is the growing childhood obesity crisis in the UK and the new HFSS legislations coming into effect later in the year.
As a result, parents are more concerned with sugar content, food labels and greens on the traffic light system than ever before.
They also want lunchbox products which help their children reach their 5-a-day. Hydra Juice is a school compliant range of 50% juice drinks that also count as one of your five a day, and taste great. The range will be re-launched by Sunmagic Juices in August 2022 and will satisfy many of the growing consumer trends.
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