New York: June 15, 2015 - Global research consultancy TNS revealed today the top twenty snack categories that show the most growth potential among U.S. consumers. The rankings were identified using Growth Point, TNS’s new proprietary, first-of-its kind directional tool that captures unmet needs of consumers and category momentum in the United States. Growth Point generates its rankings from the TNS Consumption Universe, which consists of more than 19,000 consumer interviews and covers 250 food and beverage products.

“Our Growth Point rankings highlight a real opportunity for retailers and manufacturers,” says John Essegian, Executive Vice President, TNS. “Being able to identify where consumer needs and the markets are heading before spending any research dollars not only increases efficiencies and success, but can also greatly accelerate the innovation process.”

The top twenty snack categories that show the most growth potential among consumers are:

Ranking	Category	Ranking	Category
1	Nuts	11	Protein-based sandwiches (chicken/tuna)
2	Greek yogurt	12	Peanut butter
3	Regular yogurt	13	Gluten-free bread
4	Health-oriented cereal	14	Guacamole dip
5	Natural | organic crackers	15	Squeezable yogurt
6	Soft tortillas | wraps | pitas	16	Salsa
7	Dessert-type yogurt	17	Hot specialty coffee drinks
8	Block | wedge of cheese	18	Iced or frozen coffee
9	Cottage cheese	19	Fruit smoothies
10	String cheese | cheese sticks	20	Tuna from can | pouch

 

“Our rankings indicate that there are growth opportunities for healthy type snacks like nuts, yogurts and natural ingredient based snacks. This doesn’t mean there isn’t room to enjoy more indulgent type items like smoothies and specialty coffee drinks. When we look at protein based snacks – yogurts, cheeses, and peanut butter – their place in our rankings indicate the emerging importance of protein-dense foods in consumer’s diets,” says Essegian. “While our rankings do show a health-oriented skew, it is interesting to note some extremely healthy items like fresh fruits and vegetables, and health bars didn’t make the top 20 ranking. While convenient for any occasion, these categories don’t capture that unique balance of consumer momentum and unmet need. That’s the beauty of Growth Point; it provides clear direction for growth, taking the guesswork out of where you should focus your innovation efforts.”

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About Growth Point

Growth Point generates its rankings from TNS’s Consumption Universe, which consists of more than 19,000 consumer interviews and covers 250 food and beverage products in the United States. The analysis combines a degree of unmet consumer needs with a degree of momentum that each product area has — momentum meaning consumers are moving into that product segment rather than moving out of it. Where there is both unmet needs and positive momentum, you have significant growth potential.

About TNS

TNS advises clients on specific growth strategies around new market entry, innovation, brand switching and customer strategies, based on long-established expertise and market-leading solutions. With a presence in over 80 countries, TNS has more conversations with the world’s consumers than anyone else and understands individual human behaviours and attitudes across every cultural, economic and political region of the world.

TNS is part of Kantar, the data investment management division of WPP and one of the world's largest insight, information and consultancy groups. Please visit www.tnsglobal.com for more information.

About Kantar

Kantar is the data investment management arm of WPP and one of the world's largest insight, information and consultancy groups. By uniting the diverse talents of its 12 specialist companies, the group is the pre-eminent provider of compelling data and inspirational insights for the global business community. Its 30,000 employees work across 100 countries and across the whole spectrum of research and consultancy disciplines, enabling the group to offer clients business insights at every point of the consumer cycle. The group’s services are employed by over half of the Fortune Top 500 companies.  For further information, please visit us at www.kantar.com