Nuts, fruits, and other common inclusions deliver many attributes consumers seek, including elevated taste, texture, and nutrition. In addition, these ingredients address consumer increasing interest in plant-based foods and proteins, and often fit clean-label criteria.

Crackers are a product category that has nearly universal appeal. Consumers are snacking more often, especially in light of the recent pandemic, and the expanding variety of crackers on the market today make them a natural fit for nearly any snacking occasion.

Who doesn't enjoy a sweet treat from time to time? In fact, when surveyed by Datassential last year, 93 percent of consumers had eaten dessert in the past week, and 55 percent had enjoyed dessert within the past day (Datassential, "Dessert's Sweet Spot," Keynote Report, 2019).

Functional ingredients such as dough conditioners are fundamental additions for many snack and bakery products. Dough conditioners, like enzymes and emulsifiers, help improve product quality, extend shelf life, streamline dough handling and machinability, and more.

Everyone loves chocolate. In an April 2018 report, Mintel reports that 90 percent of adults reported purchasing some form of chocolate in a three-month period of time.

It's vital to get flavor and color right when developing snack and bakery products. Color helps establish the consumer's initial expectations of a product, and flavor is a critical part of delivering against those expectations.

The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines recommends consuming 2 cup equivalents of fruit and 2 and a half cup equivalents of vegetables per day, based on a 2,000-calorie diet.

Sugar is now squarely top of mind for consumers. According to the 2019 International Food Information Council (IFIC) "Food & Health" survey, limiting sugar intake is one of the top ways in which consumer diets have changed over the past several years, and 80 percent of consumers are trying to limit and/or avoid added sugars.

To successfully bake products requires an astute blend of art and science. A fundamental ingredient in the baking process is the leavening agent. Leavening contributes essential sensory characteristics to bakery products.

While taste will remain a dominant factor for all food products, health, wellness and the nutritional value of the product is growing in importance. Several studies point to the fact that consumers are looking to achieve better overall wellness by selecting foods and ingredients that provide a functional health benefit.