Sales of snack foods – defined in a new Key Note report as crisps, savoury snacks, nuts and baked snacks – reached £2.2bn in 1999, with the market increasing in value by 4% in that year. The growing popularity of snacking, increasing work pressures, the decline of family meal occasions, and extensive new product developments by the leading suppliers have all helped to maintain healthy sales growth in the market.

Bagged snacks – crisps, savoury snacks, and nuts – account for 90% of all sales and the largest market sector is crisps with sales of £1bn in 1999, or 47.3% of all sales. However, the crisps sector is struggling to maintain growth due mainly to the commodity nature of the market, high household penetration limiting further growth, and low prices. Over 85% of all adults purchase crisps on a regular basis but the majority of these buy standard crisps where there is a strong own-label presence and where new product development activity is limited. However, premium and gourmet crisps are offering some growth potential.

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Bagged savoury snacks are the most buoyant sector of the market and these include potato-based brands and increasing numbers of corn-based brands, such as the expanding tortilla chips product sector. Sales of bagged snacks increased by 6.6% to £780m in 1999. In 1999, 49% of all adults purchased these products regularly and household penetration grew, helped by new product developments. The nuts market was valued at £147m in 1999, growing by just 2.8% compared to 1998. The nuts market is biased towards older consumers but new product developments – such as new types of nuts and coated nuts – are being used to try to attract younger consumers. The plain and savoury biscuits market, valued at £113m in 1999, is experiencing limited growth. However, sales of savoury snack biscuits increased by 3% in 1999, helped by the growing popularity of lunch box meals, and brand extensions into the dips market.


Three brand groups – Walkers, Golden Wonder, and KP Foods — dominate the UK snack foods market with Walkers claiming over 50% of the UK crisps sector. Other leading suppliers include Bensons Crisps, Red Mill Snack Foods, The Jacob’s Bakery, and The Snack Factory. The household supplies group Procter & Gamble PLC has become a major player in the market in a relatively short space of time through the success of one brand, Pringles. However, overcapacity, particularly in the crisps sector, has led to some rationalisation and restructuring of the market in recent months.


Sales of snack foods are forecast to continue to grow year-on-year over the next 5 years but at a much slower rate than in previous years. Sales are forecast to increase by 2.4% in 2000 and by 13.7% between 2000 and 2004. Crisps sales will continue to struggle while bagged savoury snacks and savoury snack biscuits will be the main growth areas. New product developments in both sectors will increase sales although healthy eating concerns may require more emphasis on low-fat and premium products.


“Snack Foods” was published by Key Note in February 2000, and is priced at £375. Click here to order your copy

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Table of Contents

























































































































































































































































































































































































































































Executive Summary 1
1.Market Definition 2
INTRODUCTION 2
MARKET SECTORS 2
Bagged Snacks 2
Crisps 2
Savoury Snacks 3
Nuts 4
Baked Snacks 4
Plain and Savoury Biscuits 4
Savoury Snack Biscuits 4
MARKET POSITION 5
Table 1: UK Consumer Expenditure on Food and Snack Food Sales as a Proportion of Total Food Expenditure (£m and % share), 1993-1999 5
MARKET TRENDS 5
Social and Economic Changes 5
Shopping Trips 6
Healthy Eating 6
Global Brands 6
2. Market Size 7
THE TOTAL MARKET 7
Table 2: The UK Snack Foods Market by Value (£m at rsp), 1995-1999 7
MARKET SECTORS 7
Table 3: The UK Snack Foods Market by Sector by Share (% of sales), 1995, 1998-1999 8
Table 4: Market Trends in the UK Snack Foods Market by Sector by Value (£m at rsp),1995-1999 9
Crisps 9
Table 5: Estimated Sales of Crisps by Subsector by Value (£m and % share), 1999 10
Savoury Snacks 11
Table 6: The Savoury Snacks Sector by Subsector by Value (£m and % share), 1998 and 1999 12
Nuts 12
Plain and Savoury Biscuits 12
Snack Biscuits 12
3. Industry Background 13
INTRODUCTION 13
INDUSTRY STRUCTURE 13
Table 7: UK Manufacturers by Estimated Share of the Bagged Snacks Market (% of value sales), 1999 14
RETAIL DISTRIBUTION 14
TRADE ASSOCIATIONS 15
The Snack, Nut and Crisps Manufacturers’ Association 15
The European Snacks Association 15
The Biscuit, Cake, Chocolate and Confectionery Alliance 15
4. Brands 16
MARKET DEVELOPMENTS 16
BRAND NAMES 16
Table 8: Selected Leading UK Crisps and Savoury Snack Brands, 1999 17
BRAND SHARES 18
Table 9: Leading Brands by Retail Sales in the Grocery Market (£m and % of total value sales), 1999 19
CONSUMER RESEARCH 19
Table 10: Popularity of Selected Snack Food Brands (% of adults buying on a regular basis), 1999 20
Table 11: Popularity of Selected Snack Food Brands by Age (% of adults buying on a regular basis), 1999 21
Table 12: Popularity of Selected Snack Food Brands by Social Grade (% of adults buying on a regular basis), 1999 22
Table 13: Popularity of Selected Snack Brands in the Regions of the South of England and Wales (% of adults buying regularly), 1999 23
Table 14: Popularity of Selected Snack Food Brands in Regions in the Midlands and the North (% of adults buying regularly), 1999 24
BRAND DEVELOPMENTS 24
Walkers 24
Golden Wonder 25
KP Foods 25
Bensons 25
Red Mill Snack Foods 25
Trebor Bassett 25
BRAND ADVERTISING 26

Table 15: Main Media Advertising Expenditure on Snack Foods by the Leading Brands (£000), in the Years Ending September, 1998 and 1999

 27
5. Competitor Analysis 28
INTRODUCTION 28
Table 16: Selected Leading UK Snack Food Companies by Turnover (£m), 1998/1999 29
Walkers Snack Foods Ltd 29
KP Foods Ltd 30
Golden Wonder Ltd 31
Procter & Gamble Ltd 31
Bensons Crisps PLC 32
The Snack Factory Ltd 32
Red Mill Snack Foods Ltd 33
The Jacob’s Bakery Ltd 33
Kettle Foods Ltd 33
Seabrook Potato Crisps Ltd 33
ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION 34

Table 17: Main Media Advertising Expenditure by Leading Crisp and Snack Manufacturers (£m), Years Ending September 1998 and 1999

 34
6. Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats 35
STRENGTHS 35
WEAKNESSES 35
OPPORTUNITIES 36
THREATS 36
7. Buying Behaviour 37
EATING OCCASIONS 37
CONSUMER PENETRATION 37
Potato Crisps 37
Table 18: Popularity of Potato Crisps (% of adults), 1999 38
Table 19: Penetration and Profile for Potato Crisps by Age, Social Grade, and Region (% of adults), 1999 39
Potato Sticks and Other Crisp Savoury Snacks 40
Table 20: Popularity of Potato Sticks and Other Crisp Savoury Snacks (% of adults), 1999 40
Table 21: Penetration and Profile for Potato Sticks and Other Crisp Savoury Snacks by Age, Social Grade, and Region (% of adults), 1999 41
Packeted and Tinned Nuts 42
Table 22: Popularity of Packeted and Tinned Nuts (% of adults), 1999 43
Table 23: Penetration and Profile for Packeted and Tinned Nuts by Age, Social Grade, and Region (% of adults), 1999 44
8. Outside Suppliers to the Industry 45
INTRODUCTION 45
RAW MATERIALS 45
FLAVOURINGS 45
SPECIALIST MACHINERY 46
PACKAGING 46
9. Current Issues 47
BRAND DEVELOPMENTS 47
Bensons Crisps 47
Hula Hoops 47
CORPORATE DEVELOPMENTS 47
Grupo Maseca 47
Bensons Crisps PLC 47
The Jacob’s Bakery Ltd 48
SNACK BRAND WEB SITES 48
HEALTH ISSUES 48
Procter & Gamble Ltd 48
The Vegetarian Society 49
10. Forecasts 50
FORECASTS 2000 TO 2004 50
Table 24: Forecast UK Snack Foods Market by Value (£m), 2000-2004 50
MARKET DRIVERS 50
Table 25: Age Profile of the UK Population (000), 1996, 2001 and 2006 51
MARKET SEGMENTS 51
Crisps 51
Savoury Snacks 52
Nuts 52
Baked Savoury Snacks 52
Table 26: The Forecast UK Snack Foods Market by Sector by Value (£m and % change), 2000-2004 53
11. Market Growth 54
GROWTH TO THE YEAR 2004 54
Figure 1: The Total Market for UK Snack Foods (£m), 1995-2004 54
12. Company Profiles 55
Bensons Crisps PLC 56
The Jacob’s Bakery Ltd 58
Red Mill Snack Foods Ltd 60
United Biscuits (Holdings) PLC 62
Walkers Snack Foods Ltd 64
13. Company Financials 66
14. Further Sources 68
Associations 68
Periodicals 69
Directories 71
General Sources 71
Hoppebstedt Bonnier Information Sources 73
Government Publications 74
Other Sources 75
Understanding TGI Data 83
Number, Profile, Penetration 83
Social Grade 84
Standard Region 84
Key Note Research 85
The Key Note Range of Reports 86

“Snack Foods” was published by Key Note in February 2000, to order your copy click here


Further information : Tel +44(0)181 481 8750 or E-mail keynotesales@icc.co.uk