Cheerios Veggie Blends from General Mills are made with fruit and vegetable puree and whole grain oats. They launched nationally in Walmart in two flavors - Apple Strawberry and Blueberry Banana – and contain fruit flavors with spinach, carrot and sweet potato. They are gluten-free and have no artificial flavors or colors. General Mills also announced six new cereals to be introduced from January 2024, including Reese’s Puffs Peanut Butter Lovers, Nature Valley French Vanilla Protein Granola, Maple Cinnamon Cheerios Hearty Nut Medley and Honey Nut Cheerios Minis.

In the UK, sales volumes for branded cereals are down since 2022, with Weetabix shedding over 10 percent of volume, which the brand says was caused by consumers shopping more at discounters, buying own label and buying less food generally. In response, Weetabix is trying to add value, with on-pack promotions during the FIFA Women's World Cup, changing its packaging and highlighting the use of homegrown wheat, an approach used by Cereal Partners when it launched its Nestlé Wheat Plan last year. Other reasons for the decline in volumes include HFSS rules, which affected the merchandizing of indulgent ranges. Some brands have absorbed cost increases to help buoy volumes, and some healthier cereal brands, such as Fuel10K, have seen positive growth in volumes and value. Fuel10K was acquired by Premier Foods recently for £34 million. 

Launched just over two years ago in Norfolk, England, Simply Roasted produces skin-on crisps with half the fat of traditional fried crisps, less salt and no more than 99 calories per serving. They come in a variety of flavors - sea salt, sea salt and cider vinegar, mature cheddar and red onion, black truffle, and duck and hoisin – and can be purchased on simplyroastedcrisps.co.uk as well as through major retailers including Waitrose and Whole Foods. Juliet McKenna from Simply Roasted said that the brand focuses on “all-natural ingredients with minimal processing, no additives, vegan and gluten-free, but ultimately driven by flavour and quality.” It is adding to the line-up in February. 

“Kokkiri Wow Bokka Chips” are a new crispy seaweed snack from TMK (Thailand), which owns the "Kokkiri" seaweed brand. It’s being positioned to appeal to the younger generation under the slogan “Crunchy Deliciousness Beyond Limits." They come in three flavors and use seaweed from the Korean Sea as well as glutinous rice. The Kokkiri brand has expanded distribution to modern trade and Ms. Saengduean Phraecharoen of TMK (Thailand) expects the new product to be a flagship for the brand as it expands to other countries in Asia, such as Malaysia, China, Vietnam and Taiwan, where the product is already available in all 6,000 7-Eleven stores. 

Brits fond of Pringles will soon have a gluten-free option thanks to The Good Crisp Company, which will be debuting four varieties - Original, Sour Cream & Onion, Sea Salt & Vinegar and Smoky BBQ – in 160g sharing canisters. Original and Sour Cream & Onion also have 45g formats for impulse consumption. Slated for release next month, they are likely to be priced at around 40 percent higher than Pringles. Founded by Australian Matt Parry, the brand launched in the US in 2017 with distribution in Whole Foods Market outlets in north California and now has listings in Walmart and Kroger. The UK launch is to be supported by Balloon Brands, a consultancy founded last year by John McManus. He wants to promote and develop better-for-you and premium brands in the UK and Ireland and said the firm will “essentially act as fractional country managers for these brands coming into the UK.”

Insane Kane Strikin’ Hot Crisps are the result of a partnership between Insane Grain and England soccer captain Harry Kane. Containing sorghum, they are positioned as being beneficial to gut health, and they also contain a probiotic the brand claims provides a “world-first” gut health benefit in a crisp format. The crisps are gluten-free, have less fat than traditional crisps and are available from the Insane Grain website. 

Salty snacks startup Rivalz aims to tackle some of the trickiest health issues facing the world, including diabetes, malnutrition and obesity. CEO Peter Barrick says the technology is available to produce healthy snacks with the texture and flavor of unhealthy ones. Rivalz currently offers three varieties of stuffed snacks, each with 8g of protein and 4g of fiber per serving. Barrick says: “High protein, high fiber, low sodium and low carbohydrate. Our idea is to create a highly efficient caloric snack, where every calorie counts,” and includes a focus on micronutrients to tackle malnutrition. Rivalz is using AI to help, for example, by using extrusion to make healthier snacks with indulgent texture and flavors. AI speeds up the experimentation process to reduce the number of iterations.  

New limited-edition Classic Dill Pickle Chips from Grillo’s Pickles and Boulder Canyon are now available at select retailers, including Whole Foods Markets, Sprouts, Fresh Thyme and Better Health Market. They team dill, garlic and vinegar flavors with Boulder Canyon kettle chips, cooked in avocado oil. Sold in 5.25oz bags for $3.99, they are non-GMO, Kosher Certified and gluten free.

Osher Hoberman, Chief Marketing Officer at KIND Snacks, talked about how the brand is promoting kindness in the snack aisle. He said: “Kindness is in our DNA, and it is why we collectively do the things we do. This World Kindness Day, we embraced the opportunity to spread kindness by focusing on nourishing our communities.” It recently introduced the Live Kind Bracelet as a way of reminding people to choose kindness.  

Weetabix has acquired the own-label Deeside Cereals business from Wholebake. Based in North Wales, Deeside Cereals makes breakfast cereals and cereal bars for leading food retailers. Wholebake, which acquired the unit in 2021, is looking to streamline operations to address losses attributed to the pandemic, labor shortages caused by Brexit, and input cost inflation. Weetabix will continue to run Deeside Cereals as a standalone unit.  

HIPPEAS, a plant-based snack brand, has launched a limited-edition multipack that features the comedy film Migration from the creators of The Super Mario Bros. and Despicable Me, Illumination. Migration is to be released on December 22 and HIPPEAS, its exclusive salty snack partner, is offering a 6-pack of 0.8oz bags of the chickpea puffs flavor, Vegan White Cheddar, available at Whole Foods, Sprouts, Kroger, as well as other retailers. Each pack contains 4g of plant protein and 3g of fiber, and they are gluten free, vegan, non-GMO, and free of major allergens like nuts, dairy and soy. 

Tapping into the growth in demand for healthier snacks, Bob’s Natural will expand distribution of its Pinole Chips in 2024, according to founder and CEO Bob Gruder. They are gluten-free and have 10g of protein and five of fiber in each serving. The brand was inspired by the Tarahumara tribe in Mexico, known for running long distances and who ate pinole, a roasted maize with chia and spices, and soaked with lime. Lime makes it easier for the body to digest the corn and chia seeds are a good source of fiber. Available on the brand’s website, the chips come in Barbeque, Chili Lime and Traditional flavors, and now Gruder wants to build out the DTC channel, extend to retail through natural and national chains, and introduce another flavor or two.  

Snack’in For You, a snacks brand owned by Sigma Foods, launched in some convenience stores across the southwest US a range of vegetable-based gluten-free backed puffs that are high in protein and now plans a national rollout. Each 1oz serving contains 4g of protein as well as real vegetables and four core ingredients - cauliflower or broccoli, rice flour, chickpeas and pea protein. The range features four variants: Buffalo Ranch Cauliflower, Mesquite Barbeque Broccoli, Cheddar Jalapeno Broccoli, and Sour Cream and Onion Cauliflower.  

UK-based crisp brand Walkers has revamped the Sunbites range, reformulating the product to be HFSS compliant and changing to recycled plastic packaging. Sunbites now contains less salt and sugar than before and is made with wholegrains and natural flavorings. It joins other PepsiCo non-HFSS brands such as 45% Less Salt, Baked, Doritos Dippers and PopWorks.  

Former Dr. Praeger Sensible Foods VP, David Cantor, has launched a new sustainable food brand called Folk Revival, focusing on healthier meal options made using heirloom and heritage ingredients. The first inaugural product is wild acorn-based cereal cups. They come in four flavors -  


original, blueberry almond, maple walnut and chai almond – and contain 20g of protein and are low carb, keto-friendly, plant-based and gluten-free. Acorns are also high in fiber and healthy fats, rich in calcium, potassium, magnesium and other essential minerals, and are a popular heritage food among Native Americans. Other ingredients include hemp protein flour, hemp hearts, pumpkin seeds and flax seeds. The cups can be eaten cold or heated in a microwave and are available in around 170 locations – including Whole Foods - in 19 states. Cantor has so far raised $153,750, mostly from friends and family investments.

Californian snack brand CauliPuffs has launched officially on www.CauliPuffs.com and Amazon, and can be purchased wholesale at www.faire.com. Based in the Central Coast area, the puffed snack range contains cauliflower, rice and corn, and is free from gluten and soy. The snacks are non-GMO and come in White Cheddar, Honey BBQ and Vegan Salt & Pepper variants.  

Joy St protein puffs are available across Australia in Woolworths Supermarkets at AUS$4.30 per bag. They are gluten free and contain half the recommended daily intake of protein and less than 100 calories per serving. There are three flavors. Sweet Chilli & Sour Cream has been joined by newly launched Cheese and Honey Soy Chicken flavors. Brand-owner Good Food Partners also owns Sunsol, Freedom, Messy Monkeys, Heritage Mill, Arnold’s Farm and Sam’s Pantry. 

New research from industry analysts 201 Analytics shows that although US consumers are still snacking, they are increasingly looking for healthier options. Savory snacks are the most popular, including those that are gluten free or high in protein, and this trend has strengthened during and since the pandemic. New innovations are exploring the mushroom jerky, legumes, sweet potatoes and other novel ingredients in different combinations and 210 Analytics believes this will continue. Snackers have had to face rising prices for their indulgences, and many have been cutting back on purchases, but producers have varied pack sizes to meet different budgets.