Surprising Facts on Snacking

It turns out that consumers have a few unexpected snacking habits, according to a new survey conducted by Punchbowl.com. Surprisingly, 70 percent of consumers admitted to have eaten an entire bag of party snack food in one sitting, while 50 percent of people snack in bed, and more than a quarter of people snack while walking the aisles of a grocery store. Even more surprisingly, 17 percent of consumers admitted to have eaten party snacks while in the bathroom.

The survey found that chips reign in the world of party snacks. Tortilla chips top the list with 32 percent of people claiming this snack food as their favorite for parties, followed by potato chips with 25 percent. Chips also lead to double dipping, the survey found, with 46 percent of consumers admitting to doing so at parties.

“These survey results provide snack food marketers a deeper look into the celebrations market,” said Matt Douglas, CEO of Framingham, Mass.-based Punchbowl. “We hope this new data sparks conversation about how to reach party hosts who spend billions on party snacks every year.”

Punchbowl’s snack food survey also revealed the following:

• 25 percent of people say eating a snack stopped them from having a public meltdown
• 83 percent of people look for party snack recipes online
• Flavor (selected by 72 percent of people) is the number one influencer when it comes to choosing snack foods for a party
• 46 percent of women prefer ribbed chips over regular chips

Punchbowl conducted the 10-question survey of 2000 active users who hosted an event in the last three months. Survey results can be found in the white paper, “Mix & Mingle: 15 Ways Snack Brands Can Be The Life of the Party.”