Around the world and across households, cravings drive consumers’ snack choices. If that’s a widely held, time-tested truth, so is the reality that cravings tend to vary and evolve.
Circana’s webinar on global snacking highlighted several emerging flavor trends impacting shoppers’ tastes and purchases. Flavor, in addition to other in-demand attributes like functionality and intentionality, meets consumer preferences and needs at various points in the day and throughout markets.
Flavor findings from Circana include the following:
How sweet it is
Circana data indicates that sweet snacks are gaining momentum, while the consumption of savory snacks is dipping a bit. In 2025, sweet snacks were up 0.8 percentage points (ppts) in Australia, 0.4 ppts in the six European nations of Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain (E6), and 0.7 ppts in the U.S.; that upward trend continues year-to-date in 2026. The value category share of savory snacks declined in 2025 by 0.8 ppts in Australia, 0.4 ppts in E6 nations, and 0.7 ppts in the U.S. That downward trajectory has continued this year, too.
Flavor at a premium
A bifurcation in behavior, in which demand is coming from both value-conscious consumers and premium-focused shoppers, is evident in snacking. In Europe, trendy flavors such as Dubai and Tokyo chocolate are showing up in premium snacks. Viral flavors are also fueling interest in premium snacks available through social commerce platforms such as TikTok Shop and Instagram.
Novel approach
Circana’s insights confirm epicurean snackers are experimenting with flavors, embracing different ingredients and snack types from around the world. More than half (52%) of consumers in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region agree their food preferences have changed as a result of being introduced to foods from different cultures, and 58% say they like to experiment with new and exotic snack flavors.
Inventive combinations help deliver on newness. In the U.S., more consumers are opting for unexpected sweet, spicy, savory, and fruity combinations. Bold mashups are also tantalizing taste buds among European snackers, while sweet-spicy “swicy” flavors are trending in Australia.
Dimensions in snacking
On that topic of “swicy,” although single heat notes still play a role in snacks, intense heat sensations can be overwhelming for some consumers. What’s emerging are snacks with a layering of spice and other complementary flavors, such as sweet, smoky, or tangy flavors. This layering is widening the audience of consumers who like some heat but seek out craveable snacks.
Flavor is just one trend fueling a multi-market rise in snacking. Circana’s research shows the snackscape grew 3.2% in the U.S., 5.5% in Europe, and 6.9% in Australia in 2025.
Get more food for thought: Watch the Global Snack Unwrap webinar
