Snack food has been an all-time favorite preference for people worldwide. It has always been a favorite companion for kids, adults, and youngsters at the time of binge-watch, tea time, and other activities.
The list of snack food is never-ending. It includes roasted nuts, popcorns, savories, bakery products, frozen meals, chocolates, drinks, etc.
Human history traces the discrete frequency and content of meals. Earlier, light foods or leftovers were eaten as snacks. The preference was limited to natural, sweet foods, including grapes, figs, apples, etc.
The evolution of food blogging
Snack food has always been an ever-popular choice for food lovers. Various food bloggers began innovating recipes to promote the advent of healthy snacks once again. Not only that, food became the rapidly growing category on YouTube.
Vloggers and Influencers search for innovative food outlets to create the content. The growing era of the digital world not only influenced the demand for a variety of food items but also helped influencers create innovative content. Companies have also begun strategizing their campaigns to gain popularity in the virtual world.
A brief history of food blogging
It all began in 1997 with Jim Leff and Bob Okumura. The partners founded Chowhound, an online discussion forum regarding New York food.
By 1999, Blogger, a web-based blogging software, was introduced by Pyra Labs. The app was considered an innovative platform for bloggers to share their ideas.
Food Blogging Before the Internet
Let us talk about the history before the internet. The traditional ways of food blogging were limited to magazines and newspapers.
Prominent corporations like Hearst, Time Inc., and Meredith dominated the food market with their incredible recipes published in magazines.
Unlike today’s impression-based algorithm, early methods generated profits through a massive number of advertisers buying columns in magazines and newspapers.
Social media changed the entire outlook
It is legit to state that social media has changed the entire outlook of the snack food industry. People have been exploring places in search of creative content.
Instagram, Facebook, tik-tok has been the popular platform to share food stories and gain audience attention through views, likes, and comments.
Tieghan Gerard, Yumna Jawad, Fumino Kimura, and Minimalist Baker are some of the leading food bloggers on social media.
Social Media, an opportunity for brands and bloggers
The advent of social media creates opportunities for bloggers and popularizes the unseen talents of cooks. A five-minute review can do magics for a small restaurant.
Nutter Butter, a prominent butter cookies brand, went viral overnight through social media. The video gained the attention of thousands of new followers.
In addition, brands leave no occasion to bring up extremely innovative content to gain a large audience base.
Mc Donalds, a fast-food giant, began a campaign named ‘Memory Bites’ based on emotional appeal in the advertising. Apart from that, scary crown night by Burger King on the Halloween theme picked up steam immediately after the launch.
Did the COVID-19 pandemic obstruct the adoption of packed food items?
The demand for snack food remains consistent during the pandemic period as people preferred avoiding human contact.
Due to work pressure, the adoption of salty snacks saw a modest boost in sales. Chips, popcorn, pretzels, and tortilla chips are all ready-to-eat snacks.
People in Italy increased their consumption of processed food. The consumption of chocolate, chips, and snacks rapidly increased, owing to anxiety and other circumstances.
The Advent of Cloud-Kitchen
The lockdown restrictions regarding the consumption of food created havoc. Restaurants were all closed during the pandemic period. However, the advent of cloud kitchen emerged as a recovery opportunity for the restaurants and outlets.
Cloud kitchen has been a boon in times of epidemic. The concept of cloud kitchen has been around for a while. However, it took on fresh life during the COVID-19 epidemic.
The demand shifted away from traditional in-dining options to safe and secure home delivery services.
GRAB, a Singaporean food delivery app expanded to offering services in Thailand and Vietnam by 2019.
Similarly, in the midst of the epidemic, C3, a leading virtual kitchen company, announced to hire at least 1000 new employees to reinforce its 138-cloud kitchen network. The company planned roughly 85 kitchens when it first opened its doors, but the growth surged during the pandemic.
Internet and Fast Food
The connection between the internet and fast food is ever-evolving. Even during the pandemic, the internet helped startups to gain the audience’s attention within minutes.
Chefs began displaying their food art to influence others. Dieticians and snack food have always been considered rivals. However, the advent of the internet has altered the entire landscape as dieticians introduce innovative healthy recipes to replace other meals.
The trending social media is expected to create favorable opportunities for the brands thriving in the snack food industry.
According to Astute Analytica, the global snack food market is forecast to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.6% during the forecast period from 2021-2030.
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