Healthy Snacking Takes Center Stage As School Year Begins

As we enjoy the waning days of summer, we are quite aware that Q4 is around the corner and the autumn schedule of events will soon begin. That also means that by the time you read this, many children will already be back in school. Why school begins before Labor Day is beyond me, but the chances are that over the summer, they didn’t eat enough fruits and veggies. To help address that situation, The Foundation for Fresh Produce is launching its first-ever month-long campaign, “Hacks for Healthy Back-to-School Habits,” in partnership with leading U.S. retailers and food industry partners. In our market, Inserra Supermarkets and Weis Markets are participating in the campaign, which is designed to promote simple and engaging food, cooking and meal prep “hacks,” to help instill healthy eating habits in children as they head back to school. “The foundation’s research underscores the crucial role that early childhood produce consumption plays in establishing lifelong healthy eating patterns,” says Emily Holdorf, registered dietitian for the Foundation for Fresh Produce. “With our partners, we are committed to providing practical hacks and promoting consistent produce habits and messaging to ensure children maintain their recommended consumption levels as they grow.”

Participating retailers will engage children and their families with innovative strategies to integrate more fruits and vegetables into their daily routines. Some campaign elements include cooking demonstrations, virtual classes, in-store displays, social media posts, and produce incentive coupons. “Making it easy and fun for kids to consume more fruits and vegetables is the key to success when it comes to building lifelong healthy eating habits for children,” says Katie Calligaro, director, marketing and communication for the organization. “While we know the majority of children consume meals prepared by their school’s nutrition program (which are required to follow the Dietary Guidelines for Americans), the meals and snacks prepared at home play a critical role in boosting fruit and vegetable consumption.” Calligaro added. “The more they hear it, see it, and experience it, the more likely they are to repeat it, which is what creates a habit.”

So, here’s a clever hack I found that’s good for children and adults as well. It’s called a ‘Snackle Box.’ I first noticed it on my niece’s Instagram. She’s in the theater industry and needs healthy snacks throughout the day to keep her going. Then, I did some research and found The Produce Moms promoted it on their website. It’s a version of a fishing tackle box with compartments that hold a variety of snacks of one’s choice, from veggies, fruits, and hummus to pretzels, cheeses and other salty snacks instead of fishing accessories. These boxes come in many sizes and are great on road trips (for both work and vacations). In addition, the TSA allows them through the airport scanners, as long as there’s no liquid. They can be found online, and most are under $20. That’s a win-win for everyone!

Since we’re talking snacks, both healthy and some not so healthy, and this month is Food Trade News’ DSD issue, this interesting information is very timely indeed. Whether it’s crunchy, sweet, healthy, or salty, the snacks that shoppers reach for offer a glimpse into the eating habits of different age groups. Retail data science, insights, and media company 84.51° has compiled trends on the snacking preferences of shoppers ages 18 to 34 (Generation Z to younger millennials) compared with those of older shoppers ages 35 to 54 (older millennials to Generation X) and ages 55 to 74 (Generation X to baby boomers). Top snack choices of shoppers ages 18-34 are fruits, crackers, popcorn, pretzels and potato chips; ages 35-54 are cheeses, fruits, potato chips, crackers and tortilla chips; and the Boomers’ top choices are cheeses, potato chips, crackers, cookies and of course, chocolate. The least favorite snack in all age groups is pita chips. We are a snacking nation. We snack both day and night, but mostly in the afternoon. Price, quality, and flavor are the three most important attributes shoppers look for in their snacks to ensure they’re getting good value but of those the top reason for purchasing snacks impulsively is because the item was ‘on sale.’ And we use coupons to purchase snacks…a lot. We tend to avoid high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, hydrogenated oils/trans-fati and all the ingredients we can’t pronounce (are you listening Big Food?) and more often we seek out snacks that are healthy yet still tasty. We are snacking more in 2024 than we did last year. What does your snack profile look like?

Earlier this month Weis Markets announced that registration is now open for its fifth annual Weis 4 School program, which is expected to generate $500,000 in donations for pre-K through eighth-grade schools in Weis Markets’ seven-state market area. Schools can register now through October 31, 2024, and the program will run through April 30, 2025, and schools and customers can sign up for the program online at weis4school.com. “Our Weis 4 School program offers our customers a convenient way to support their local schools. More than 700 schools participated in last year’s program, and we expect the program to keep growing,” said Maria Rizzo, Weis Markets vice president of marketing and advertising. “Once schools join our program and customers link their Weis Rewards card to their selected school, they can generate donations for that school whenever they shop in our stores.” Qualifying purchases made with a linked Weis Rewards card will generate donations for schools. All schools ranging from pre-k through eighth grade are eligible to participate, including public, private, religious schools, and daycare centers. Donation checks will be presented after the program concludes.

Kudos to the New Jersey Food Council (NJFC) which held its annual golf outing at the outstanding Suburban Golf Club in Union Township on July 29, with two rounds of golfers, morning and afternoon with lunch in between and dinner after. Widely known in business circles as the “it” golf outing of the year for networking among the state’s food industry movers and shakers, this year’s event was the strongest showing (and perfect weather) in recent memory of food industry executives representing retail, manufacturers, brokers, wholesalers and convenience stores from across New Jersey. “We are proud to host the premier industry golf event that exceeds our expectations every year,” said NJFC president Linda Doherty. “The generosity and camaraderie of the members at this outing is like no other food industry event. This enormously popular outing always brings out a great mix of food trade associates and retail executives.” NJFC had a ginormous goodie bag, filled with donations from NJFC’s retail and supplier members and industry partners. The event also included a S’mores station on the course from Kraft Heinz. Event sponsors CLA and Mission Foods provided a cigar roller; and EisnerAmper sponsored the golf balls. Winning golfers included: Best Team Score AM – Dylan Dembeck, Jack Russell, Brian Dombal, and Jared Kaufman from Minkus Family Farms team; and Best Team Score PM – Bob Jordan, Chris Jordan, Dan Rensing and Joe Parker from the US Salt team. Longest Drive (men & women) went to Craig Tomato of Inserra Supermarkets and Marissa Glatt of Acosta Sales & Marketing. Congratulations to all the winners!

The fall calendar is filling up quickly. One event you won’t want to miss is the Mid Atlantic Food Trade Organization’s (MAFTO) Fall Retailer Dinner on September 26 at the Springfield Country Club. Jason Homola from Wawa is going to give a company update and many Wawa folks are going to be in attendance. To register, go to mafto.org

Taking another trip around the sun this August are: Charlie Bell, Acme Markets; Josh Brown, Brown’s ShopRites; Michael Bozzuto, Bozzuto’s; Marty Delinski, Acme Markets; and Ed Rogers, L&L Brokerage. Buon comppleanno a tutti!

Quote of the month: “Summer needs a speeding ticket.” Unknown

Maria can be reached at maria@foodtradenews.com or 443.631.0172.