China snacks industry is currently estimated at Rmb 800 billion (US$118.3 billion) in 2021 and it is projected to cross Rmb 1 trillion (US$193.6 billion) mark by 2025, according to the report by Shanghai-based Doc & Doc Strategy Consulting.
Wang Chongyang, Founder of Doc & Doc highlighted that in the past 5 years, this industry has grown at a CAGR of 6% as such, he expects this market to double from 2025 to reach Rmb 2 trillion (US$387.2 billion ) by 2035.
Its report also discovered that the per capita consumption of snacks in China is still relatively low when compared to more developed markets like UK, the US and Japan. This is partly due to the Chinese eating habits which comprise of a much more variety of food products, as such their per capita consumption of snacks is only at 7kg, much lower than Japan (18kg), the UK (36kg) and the US (42kg).
Sweet snacks is currently the leading sub-segment in the snacks category with China being the 2nd largest market in the world for sweet packaged food after the US, with a market value of more than US$43 billion. Within this sub-segment, chocolate snacks seemed to be the most promising. Foreign players like Ferrero has continued to invest in China as one of its strategic market, and its foray into the dark chocolate category in China last year signified its confidence in the market.
Chinese consumers have sweet tooth. In terms of a broader sub-industry classification, Candies, Chocolates and Preserved Fruits are currently taking up the highest market share for snacks in China with sales revenue jumped from Rmb 151 billion (US$22.26 billion) in 2015 to Rmb 187.2 billion (US$27.6 billion) in 2020, with a CAGR of 4.4%. It is expected to reach Rmb 221.6 (US$32.7 billion) billion by 2025.
There is however a growing consumer movement in favor of healthier products with low or no-sugar.
Another category which has remained popular to Chinese consumers is the Nuts category, often regarded as a healthy snack between meals. This category has expanded rapidly from Rmb 95.4 billion (US$14 billion) in 2015 to Rmb 141.5 billion (US$20.86 billion) in 2020 at a CAGR of 8.2%, possibly reaching a sales revenue of Rmb 217.3 billion (US$32 billion) by 2025. This has made China the 3rd largest Nuts market after the EU and US, however its per capita consumption is still significantly lower than these countries.
For example, a Chinese consumer only took 30g of almonds per year on average, much lower than the global average of 170g, or in Japan (260g) or the US (1.07kg).
