PLANO, TX — Super Bowl LVII is just a little over a week away, and consumers are starting to stock up on snacks. Historically, regular tortilla chips and potato chips have been the preferred salty snack game day. Yet, the latest Snack Index report from snack food giant Frito-Lay North America, a division of PepsiCo., reveals Gen Z is changing the playing field with a preference for flavor-dusted chips.
Noted within the report is that 3 out of 5 (59%) Gen Zers surveyed gravitate toward snacks with flavor dust that leave residue on their fingers. While Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials also enjoy flavor dust-covered chips, Gen Z’s love is stronger — about 60% vs. 40% overall.
That’s important intel for the snack food industry, considering this consumer group represents a large customer base.
The Frito-Lay survey also revealed that compared with previous years, 3 out of 4 (71%) consumers surveyed said they’re excited to try new flavors or variations of their tried-and-true snacks in 2023. Breaking that down by generation, 61% of Millennials are the most willing to try new snack flavors, followed by 57% of Gen Z and 52% of Gen X. As for Boomers, they prefer to stick with the classics, with 38% saying they’d be up for trying something new.
Frito-Lay conducted its survey Jan. 12-17, 2023, with a sampling of 2,000 nationally representative US adults ages 18 and older. Interviews were conducted via email invitation and an online survey. The data was weighted to ensure an accurate representation of the US adult population ages 18 and older.
