People love learning about new food products—and the industry professionals that visit the Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery website every month are no exception. Sure, judging by the site analytics, they love to hear about breaking producer announcements, new ingredients, consumer trends, and other impactful news. Still, the numbers indicate they love to gobble up the latest information on new product launches from snack and bakery companies.
The SF&WB editorial team has reviewed the website traffic reports to see how readers like you voted with their computers, phones, tablets and other web-connected devices on what products deserve to be named the Best New Snack & Bakery Products of 2023.
The true test of product success, however, is up to consumers. If their eyeballs aren’t grabbed by the packaging, and their palates aren’t tempted by the snacking experience promised by the product name and description on the pack, then they won’t be buying. We look forward to keeping track of these products to see if, going by sales, consumers find the winners and honorable mention recipients as intriguing as our readers do.
Here’s how the process of determining the Best New Snack & Bakery Products of 2023 worked:
- Our editors accessed our online website analytics platform and sorted all the pages on snackandbakery.com to determine which were most viewed by our site visitors throughout 2023.
- Next, we separated all the articles about new product announcements from all the other news and features.
- We then broke the product announcement articles into three categories: snack launches, bakery introductions, and candy releases (look for the winners in that third category on our Candy Industry microsite later this year).
- We picked the most-viewed bakery launch and the most-viewed snack launch, in addition to a handful of honorable mention items, and we are sharing them here.
What do you think about the products that made the top of the new product list last year? We’d love to hear if you agree, or if you think other snack or bakery launches not listed here might be more worthy of the honor.
Please email spinnerj@bnpmedia.com after you’ve read all about the products below—as always, it’s great to hear from readers like you.
Snack Products // Winner
WINNER
Campbell Soup Co.
Kettle Brand Special Sauce Chips
"Our brand is always looking for opportunities to create unexpected flavors. We pay close attention to what our consumers are interested in so we can deliver artisanal flavor experiences with top tier ingredients, as we did with our Special Sauce LTO. We also look for inspiration around us from popular condiments to global cuisines to build out our portfolio. With Special Sauce, we knew it was aptly timed to BBQ season and leaned into the perfect chip for outdoor and summer occasions. Furthermore, we know condiments are popular in flavor trends and we saw brands crafting their own versions of a ‘Special Sauce.’ We took inspiration from this unique eating experience for consumers and wanted to create our own Kettle Brand version.
Our limited time offerings become a treasure hunt for fans who are on the prowl for the next unique flavor. LTOs give Kettle Brand an opportunity to push the envelope on new flavors and do things that have never been done before. They also allow us to pique the interest of new consumers looking for distinct flavors. We typically release two LTOs per year.
Our fans absolutely loved Special Sauce. It was one of our top selling LTOs to-date. The Special Sauce LTO was dubbed ‘hard to describe, but impossible to resist.’ Uniquely saucy with hints of barbecue, honey mustard, and ketchup, this LTO flavor was a special blend that made it the must-have saucy sidekick during the summer season.
We see our limited-time offerings as an opportunity to push boundaries with innovative flavors that stand out. Our Special Sauce LTO packed a combination of sweet tang and light heat into a crunchy kettle-cooked chip. We are honored to be named Best New Product of 2023 by Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery. We look forward to continuing to craft bold and unconventional chips that always stand out and deliver unconventional flavor experiences for our consumers."- Spokesperson for the Snacks Division of Campbell Soup Company (parent company of Kettle Brand)
Honorable Mentions // Snack Products
Cheetos released a new spicy flavor in January 2023. The Flamin’ Hot chip delivers an intense burst of flavor with chili peppers, garlic, ginger, and citrus.
Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cinnamojis burst outside the cereal bowl as they made their debut in the WWE ring, lucha libre-style. The cereal mascots first delighted fans in 2022 with their wacky personalities and legendary adventures. In 2023, the Cinnamojis gave themselves the ultimate makeover and blasted each other with Cinnadust to create their own lucha libre-style face masks.
Smartfood and Doritos, two snack brands owned by PepsiCo, announced a second collaboration on a new snack product in April 2023. Smartfood Doritos Cool Ranch popcorn features the tangy flavor blend associated with the tortilla chip, blending onion, garlic, tomato, and spice on Smartfood’s air-popped, ready-to-eat popcorn. The limited-edition snack follows 2022’s Smartfood Doritos Nacho Cheese popcorn release.
In 2022, Target announced an ongoing partnership with actress, New York Times bestselling author, and social media celebrity Tabitha Brown, encompassing four limited-time-only collections launching. Brown’s grocery items, including snacks, hit Target shelves in 2023; these items were priced at $2.99-$7.99.
BAKERY FOODS // WINNER
WINNER
Limited-edition Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse packaging
“Movies and snack cakes go hand-in-hand and over the years, Tastykake has done multiple exciting movie partnerships bringing the two elements together. We were thrilled at the opportunity to be a part of the Spider-Verse saga that had so much excitement and momentum behind it. Leveraging each other’s popularity in each of our respective spaces, we were able to promote both our Tastykake products and the film to a wider audience, allowing both properties to reach consumers they may not have without this dynamic partnership.
Collaborating with a theatrical event like the release of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse offers Tastykake a unique opportunity to further elevate its brand visibility and strengthen its connection with consumers. By partnering with a highly anticipated film, Tastykake can reach audiences beyond its traditional consumer base, and the association of our products with the beloved saga characters can evoke positive emotions and nostalgia. This in turn helps strengthen consumer engagement and drive sales.
The collaboration between Tastykake and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse created a crossover appeal that connected with both fans of the brand and fans of the film. The Spider-Verse saga is iconic with a long history in comics, movies, and television. By featuring the beloved characters on packaging, Tastykake tapped into the nostalgia factor, evoking memories and emotions among consumers who grew up with the character. Additionally, the limited-time-only packaging included the bonus of trading cards, which generated excitement and buzz among consumers due to the exclusivity and collectible nature.”
- Ashley Hornsby, director of brand management for Tastykake, a Flowers Foods brand
Honorable Mentions // Bakery Foods
Previously best known for its cheeses, the brand recently ventured into the frozen aisle with heat-and-eat meals, including these premium pizzas. Not surprisingly, the quartet of pizzas (Cheesy Uncured Pepperoni, Three Cheese, Three Cheese Supreme, and Cheesy BBQ Chicken) feature the brand’s signature cheeses.
Katie Lee, the owner of three namesake restaurants in the St. Louis area, pivoted after the impact of COVID-19 on her restaurants and started producing her pizzas for home consumption. After the pizzas were wildly successful with the locals, Lee decided to launch them to a wider audience, including retailers like Fresh Market and regional Whole Foods Markets.
The McKee Foods brand first launched the classic Swiss Rolls back in 1967. The new version—consisting of chocolate cake and strawberry filling coated in chocolate—is the first version of the roll to be added to the permanent, year-round lineup, although there have been seasonal and LTO iterations.
Ding Dongs and Twinkies are two longtime favorites in the lineup of snack cakes from Hostess (now owned by J.M. Smucker Co.). The treats consist of the sponge cake and creamy filling associated with Twinkies, combined with the round shape and chocolate coating connected with Ding Dongs.
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