Desserts

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Every year, as students of all ages head back to school, parents inevitably find themselves searching anew for the latest, better-for-you, healthy school snacks that their kids can pack into their lunchboxes and backpacks—snacks that feed their mind, as well as their belly.

The founder and CEO of fast-casual pizza chain Persona Pizza provides a look inside what’s driving this hot foodservice market.

When asked to name a favorite childhood snack, most people would like probably name a favorite snack cake—Twinkies, Swiss Rolls, Devil Dogs, Snowballs or another, depending on where they lived. The taste of spongy cake and sweet, creamy filling in the middle still lingers on for some consumers. Nostalgia is a strong force.

Despite Americans’ growing interest in healthier diets and better-for-you foods made with real ingredients, people still enjoy treating themselves to dessert, be it a piece of frosted layer cake, a slice of silky crème pie or a sliver of decadent cheesecake.

Tradition is the foundation that grounds much of the bakery industry’s continued success. We see this immutable fact across nearly every category, with leading companies selling billions of dollars of traditional baked goods that have long stood the test of time. These are core products beloved by millions of shoppers.

Grain diversity has grown into a topic of great interest in the wake of significant gluten-free and other snack and baked goods innovation of late.

Otis Spunkmeyer is in the process of launching a new range of clean-label muffins, cookies and snack cakes.

Dancing Deer Baking Co. has added Crispy Cookie Bites to its line of mini desserts.

San Antonio-based Sterling Foods, a special bakery products manufacturer, has been purchased by Cotton Creek Capital.

Carrie Jones-Barber and Serhat Unsal will lead the company as co-CEOs.