Candy Trends 2005/06

Trends Drive New Product Releases
New products illustrate Limited Edition, Gourmet Everyday, Blasts from the Past, Fun Flavors, Entertainment and Fitness Fanatic as top new candy categories. Here are some of the most popular trends featured at 2005 EXPO:

Limited Edition - Dark chocolate, white chocolate, “inside out” candies, fun colors, and limited edition candies are becoming increasingly popular items with consumers and manufacturers. Examples of some of the new products include Junior Mints Inside Out® and Limited Edition Ring Pops® in tropical flavors.
Gourmet Everyday - Sophisticated, sweet and scrumptious, a large consumer-based push for high-end chocolates and other sophisticated sweets has candy makers creating new concoctions like Wine Lover’s Chocolate, Mocacciono Meltaways, and chocolate covered coffee beans.
Blasts from the Past -Take a walk down memory lane as manufacturers and consumers alike re-discover childhood candy favorites. What better way to savor your childhood than enjoying favorites like Mary Janes®, Nerds, and Runts.
Fun Flavors - Candy is taking on wackier, weirder and stronger flavors now more then ever. Take your taste buds on an extreme ride with tasty sensations like berry blasts, tropical twists, spicy cinnamon and sweet and sour. Jelly Belly® is releasing a whole new lineup of unique flavors like Mint Trio and Baked Beans. Some other treats sure to sweet and sour your day are Brain Drops – Super Sour Liquid and Abba-Zaba Sour Apple, Cotton Candy, and Bubble Rum gum!
Entertainment -From summer blockbuster hits like DreamWorks’ “Madagascar” and Warner Brother’s “Harry Potter”, to old TV classics like “I Love Lucy”, the entertainment industry’s finest are joining forces with confectioners with a host of new products.
Fitness Fanatics - Who ever said you couldn’t have your cake and eat it too! With new twists on candies,fitness fanatics can pump up with candy. Blitz Cinnamon Energy Gum and Quench® Gum lets fitness buffs combine workout time and candy. And for those watching their daily points, Whitman’s introduces Weight Watchers® 1 Point candy bars in varieties like mint patties and toffee squares.

Hundreds of New Products Debuted in 2004
In 2004, 995 new confectionery products debuted in the candy industry, comprising 20 percent of all new food products. Included in the break down of products are:

Non-Chocolate: 395
Chocolate: 325
Snack Bars: 189
Gum: 86

Diet Candies and Gum Topped 2004 Hot List

Diet candy and chocolate continue to pull their weight in the industry with a 34.4 percent increase in the last year. (IRI data)
Consumers continue to purchase gum as a top treat, but without the sugar. With a 5.7 percent increase in sales, sugarless gum once again leads the charge compared to non-sugarless gum varieties. (IRI data)
Chocolate continues to be a big seller on shelves, but boxes, bags, and bars are favorites with a 12 percent growth spurt. Also seeing spurts of sales are 3.5 ounce and smaller-sized candy bars. (IRI data)
Licorice candies are making their mark among candy sales with a 5 percent growth rate in the market in the last year. (IRI data)

Candy Sales Cluster around Key Holidays

Halloween continues to be the largest candy selling holiday with Easter following close behind. Christmas and the winter holidays and Valentine’s Day also drive a big push in the confectionery market.

This annual summary of trends was prepared for the 2005 ALL CANDY EXPO. The 2006/07 trends summary will be available in June 2006. Click here for the 2004/05 trends summary.