Top 10 From the Sweets & Snacks Expo

WASHINGTONAt the 2010 SWEETS & SNACKS EXPO attendees used scanners to track their interest in tems in the New Product Showcase. Most of the top products scanned at the Expo, held this past May in Chicago, followed the hottest trends in the confectionery and snack segments.

"New and innovative products are the lifeblood of our industry. In fact, twenty-five percent of annual confectionery and snack sales are attributed to products introduced in the past two years. The Sweets & Snacks Expo was designed to be the best resource to discover the hottest and most profitable new products around," commented Larry Graham, president of the National Confectioners Association which sponsors the Expo. "Finding new products is the number one reason people attend the show. In calculating the retailer scans' in the New Product Showcase we are able to track trends in new product development to provide valuable insight to trade customers and manufacturers alike."

The majority of new products in the Showcase fell into at least one of the seven emerging trends: chocolate covered everything, twisted traditions, up in the air, Real good, galloping gourmet, fresh-n-flavorful, and dark and dreamy.

More than 13,000 products and companies were scanned at the 2010 Expo. The top ten confectionery products highlighted an on-going trend in kid's novelty items with half of the top scanned items fitting into this category. Lollipops are making a comeback in new shapes and flavors. Three types were featured in the top ten, and another four included in the top 25 scanned items.

Following are the Top 10 scanned confectionery products at the 2010 Sweets & Snacks Expo:

10: Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Mini by The Hershey Company.

9: Jelly Pop from Decoria Company, Ltd.

8: Jumbo Push Pop by Bazooka Candy Brands

7: Pop Rocks Chocolate by Pop Rocks Inc.

6: Dark Chocolate Acai Blueberry and Goji by Brookside Food Ltd.

5: Snow White Gift set from Pez Candy, Inc.

4: Disney licensed items by Imaginings 3, Inc.

3: M&M's Pretzel by MARS Chocolate North America

2: ICEE Fizzing Lollipops by Koko's Confectionery & Novelty

1: Cocktail Classic jelly beans by Jelly Belly Candy Company

The Top 5 scanned snack products at the Expo:

5: Chocolate Covered Candy Coated Kettle Corn by Kimmie Candy Company

4: Freeze Dried Fruit Snacks by Crunchies Food Company

3: Biscotti Crisps and Seasoned Nuts by Sahale Snacks

2: Nutorious Nut Confections by Nutorious

1: Silly Seeds by Sunflower Food Company.