---
title: "China 2017 Snack Consumption Trends Report"
description: "Snacks are a delightful addition to life, but growing consumer concern about nutritional value may reduce indulgence in less healthy snacks, leading to a preference for healthy options. Mintel's latest report, \"Snack Consumption Trends - China 2017,\" shows that 40% of Chinese consumers have eaten more nuts in the past six months, with 58% finding them tasty and 44% convenient, while only 9% consider them unhealthy."
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published: "2017-03-31"
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# China 2017 Snack Consumption Trends Report

> Snacks are a delightful addition to life, but growing consumer concern about nutritional value may reduce indulgence in less healthy snacks, leading to a preference for healthy options. Mintel's latest report, "Snack Consumption Trends - China 2017," shows that 40% of Chinese consumers have eaten more nuts in the past six months, with 58% finding them tasty and 44% convenient, while only 9% consider them unhealthy.

Snacks are a delightful addition to life, but growing consumer concern about nutritional value may reduce indulgence in less healthy snacks, leading to a preference for healthy options.

Mintel's latest report, "Snack Consumption Trends - China 2017," shows that 40% of Chinese consumers have eaten more nuts in the past six months, and consumers widely perceive nuts as tasty (58%) and convenient (44%), with only 9% considering them unhealthy.

Of course, nuts and seeds have always had high consumer demand in China. According to Mintel's Global New Products Database (GNPD), between 2014 and 2016, nuts and seeds snacks had the highest number of new product launches in China (17.5%), higher than the global average (15.3%).

The trend towards healthy snacks will continue into the future. In China's retail snack market, nuts and seeds snacks are the largest category by market share, with sales reaching RMB 263.7 billion in 2016. Looking ahead, Mintel expects this category to maintain a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.7% from 2015 to 2020, with sales potentially reaching RMB 345.6 billion by 2020.

Yang Qing, Senior Analyst, Food & Drink at Mintel, commented, "Consumers are increasingly aware of the health benefits of nuts and seeds snacks. For consumers, eating nuts and seeds is no longer just about passing the time or chatting with friends, but a pursuit of a healthy and fashionable lifestyle. More and more companies are choosing to package traditional bulk nuts and seeds into branded products, positioning them as healthy snacks or decent gifts, while actively innovating (such as flavored nuts, mixed nuts, and small packs suitable for travel). Under this trend, many nut brands are flourishing."

Mintel's report shows that 61% of Chinese consumers consider 'all-natural' as a trait of healthy snacks, surpassing 'with added nutrients' (42%). One-third (31%) of Chinese consumers associate 'high protein' with healthy snacks, with the highest proportion among male consumers aged 25-29 (42%). Meanwhile, 40% of female consumers are more likely to associate 'low calorie' with healthy snacks, and 41% of Chinese consumers aged 40-49 consider 'low salt' as a trait of healthy snacks.

Mintel's GNPD indicates that between 2014 and 2016, 25% of new products in China's snack market were meat or seafood snacks. Mintel's report shows that 48% of consumers find meat/seafood snacks tasty, and 46% believe they are filling.

On the other hand, sweet snacks such as candy, ice cream, and biscuits have seen relatively slower growth. Mintel's report shows that compared to the past six months, 26% of consumers are eating less chocolate, while 23% are eating more. However, Mintel found that compared to six months ago, 63% and 42% of Chinese consumers are eating more fresh fruit and vegetable snacks and dairy-based dessert snacks, respectively.

Yang Qing explained, "Consumers are increasingly aware of the dangers of sugar and fat intake. Therefore, more consumers are turning to snacks made from fresh fruits, vegetables, or dairy products. Companies producing food and beverages with a healthy image (such as nutritional supplements, cereals, or yogurt) have opportunities to enter snack consumption occasions by developing snack products. Overall, female consumers pay more attention to calorie intake, male consumers are more interested in high protein, and older consumers are more concerned about low-salt snacks. As for meat snacks, consumers' strong interest in high-protein snacks makes this category another favorite in the snack market, but currently in the Chinese market, low-salt claims are not common, and meat snacks are rarely positioned as high-protein snacks. Perhaps brands and manufacturers have the opportunity to use this feature to reposition this popular snack category."

Finally, the snack market has recently seen many imported snacks attracting public attention. Mintel's report shows that 42% of Chinese consumers are interested in trying imported snacks they have not tasted before. However, not many consumers buy imported snacks from specialty stores: 34% buy from imported food specialty stores, 28% from local stores during travel, and 19% from foreign websites. Additionally, although up to 75% of consumers have purchased snacks through various e-commerce channels, physical stores remain very important, with Mintel data showing that 96% of consumers have purchased snacks from physical stores.

"Consumers are constantly seeking new and different taste experiences, so foreign snacks have become a desirable category for many. Among these, e-commerce platforms are especially important for imported snacks. This channel not only facilitates consumer purchase of imported snacks but also lowers costs for international companies to enter the Chinese market. However, a major challenge for consumers is figuring out which foreign snacks are tastier and worth the money, but these may be more targeted at first-tier city consumers, while products positioned for the mass market can use conventional retail channels to reach more consumers, especially those in lower-tier cities," Yang Qing concluded.

Notes:
Mintel's "Snack Consumption Trends - China, 2017" report definition: Mintel commissioned a quantitative online survey to explore Chinese consumers' consumption habits and attitudes towards snack foods.

Mintel conducted a survey in November 2016 with 3,000 internet users aged 20-49 from four first-tier cities and six second- and third-tier cities in China.

Source: Mintel
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