bake - March 2013 - 40

Pretzels Step into the Snack Spotlight
Artisanal pretzels catch the attention of customers as a popular

homemade dipping sauce. The bakery also offers the 6 lb

breakfast item and a quick meal.

Giant Party Pretzel, a lightly salted soft pretzel, ideal for a large
get-together.

Snacking has become one of the hottest food trends impacting
food and beverage businesses in 2012. As the trend continues

Pretzel variety

to grow, retailers need to develop products that cater to

Growing up in Germany, David Rothe, owner of Landbrot in

consumers’ snack-ﬁlled lifestyles. Pretzels — especially the arti-

New York, NY, grew accustomed to his American relatives

sanal classics — have a unique niche in the snack food market.

stressing the deliciousness of German breads and baked goods,
particularly pretzels. With that in mind, Landbrot’s signa-

US consumers are less likely to skip their breakfast, lunch

ture items include a collection of southern German pretzels.

and dinner meal times today than they were ﬁve years ago,

Considering the popularity of pretzels, it’s to your advantage to

but these meals are often described as mini-meals rather

offer something that distinguishes your pretzel from others.

than full meals, according to The NPD Group (NPD). A recent
NPD food market report says that although Americans still

“I think it’s very important to offer variety with pretzels. It’s a

carve out main meal times, the number of items consumed at

competitive market,” Rothe says. “There are many options.”

each main meal has declined over time and consumers snack
between meals often.

While Landbrot offers classic German pretzels, there is also a
market for non-traditional styles and ﬂavors. In many ways, the

The NPD Snacking in America 2012 report shows that snack

pretzel trend could easily mirror the gourmet doughnut move-

occasions ﬁll the gaps between traditional main meals with

ment’s zany ﬂavors.

morning showing multiple eating occasions. In fact, one out of
every ﬁve eating occasions in the US is a snack and over half of

“Pretzels go with a lot of things. There is a lot of traditional

Americans (53%) are snacking two or three times a day.

German food that a pretzel goes good with, but it also goes
with peanut butter and jelly, which is extremely American,”

“Our frequent snacking is a result of our hectic lifestyles, need

says Alexis Faraci, owner of Bronx Baking Co. “The fact that it’s

for convenience, increasing desire to eat healthier foods, and

bread makes it really versatile.”

simply to enjoy what we eat,” says Darren Seifer, NPD food and
beverage industry analyst. “Food manufacturers and retailers

The Bronx Baking Co. offers The Bacon Pretzel, a traditional

will need to align their business strategies with the appro-

Bavarian lye-dipped pretzel wrapped in bacon. Lightly crunchy

priate consumer behaviors in order to capitalize on consumers’

on the outside and chewy on the inside, The Bacon Pretzel is an

penchant for snacking.”

apt example of how easily pretzels can adapt to the gourmet
foodie movement.

The convenience factor is a tremendously important element
in the pretzel snack category. Appealing to hosts and families,

Master the basics

Servatii Pastry Shop & Deli offers the Pretzel Stick Tray, which

If your bakery intends to provide classic German pretzels, it’s

has fresh-baked, sliced pretzel sticks, served with a signature

critical to communicate the difference of ﬂavor and texture of

40 < MAR 2013 | bakemag.com
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