Dive Brief:
- Peckish hopes to crack the snack market with its Peck Pack line of two pre-packaged hard-boiled eggs paired with crispy dips with flavors including maple waffles, salt and pepitas and rancheros, according to Food Business News.The snack brand will debut at Expo East this week, and the $3.99 product will be available online and at select stores starting in 2019.
- The brand was developed by California-based incubator Sonoma Brands, which launched Smashmallow, maker of better-for-you gourmet marshmallows and Zupa Noma, a low-calorie CPG soup brand. Sonoma's chief brand officer Chelsea Bialla told the publication the goal of Peckish is to offer high-protein snacks with simple ingredients and on-trend flavors. The products use organic, free-range eggs and dip options that fit paleo, keto, gluten-free and other special diets.
- Bialla said the packaged egg category could be ripe for disruption. “I can cook an amazing version of eggs in my own kitchen, but there aren’t really great, truly clean ready-to-eat options in the marketplace. That was a bit of the ‘aha moment’ in a nutshell," she said.
Dive Insight:
This new snack concept could be a savvy development, combining millennials' love for healthy, protein-packed food and convenience. And while a dollar or two seems pricey for a hard-boiled egg, young shoppers have proven they're willing to pay a premium for specialty and on-the-go products. And as Bialla noted, people in the U.S. are consuming more eggs than they have in the past 40 years — about 279 per year.
The product also seems versatile. Sonoma could sell Peck Packs at coffee shops, grocery store egg departments or delis and foodservice providers. It would make sense to promote the items as a flavorful, protein-rich snack alongside other options in spaces young buyers, who already prefer to buy ready-made meal or snack options, will find them.
The free-range eggs should further appeal to socially-conscious young shoppers. After all, millennials place the most value on the origins of food and beverages, and look for mission-based claims such as sustainable farming, fair trade and zero waste, according to a survey reported by Food & Wine.The "Ethics On the Go" survey found that millennials hold their snacks to a higher standard than other consumer groups, noting that while nearly all participants value responsible food and drink practices, an estimated 64% of consumers younger than 35 say they there aren't enough “ethical” snacks. Promoting the free-range aspect of Peckish's product could help catch these consumers' eyes.
Still, it's unclear how the new product will stack up against consumer calls for more plant-bases foods and snacks. In an editorial written for Food Dive, Morten Ernst, a second-generation “egg man” and longtime industry ambassador, recognizes recent research finding 40% of millennials are embracing meat alternatives and a more plant-centric way of eating could hurt the egg market. And while egg replacements have existed for some time, consumers have found them lacking, he said.
That’s changing, however, thanks to the likes of companies such as JUST, which spent nearly five years developing a plant-based egg alternative using mung bean as the base ingredient. The food industry is likely to see more companies and products disrupting the meat, dairy and egg sectors, which could impact the appeal of RTE hard-boiled eggs.