Bull’s heads and traffic light men: Intersnack unveils 2015 NPD

The German snack major has developed a flurry of products for 2015, from bull-shaped hollow snacks targeting young, male snackers to traffic light men chips for families.

Intersnack Germany will launch ‘Bull’s Head’ snacks under its Funny Frisch brand – the largest potato chip brand in Germany.

The specialty dough-based snacks are made using proprietary technology.

“It’s double-layered dough which has been baked, and what you get in the whole technological process is you bake a bubble of air into it and get a special crunch… It does have a playful moment in it,”​ said Saskia Rosendahl, marketing manager at Intersnack Germany.

The snack targeted young, male snackers because the form was fun and the flavors were bold, she told BakeryandSnacks.com at last week’s ISM/ProSweets 2015 tradeshow in Cologne.

“What’s very typical about the specialty snacks market is there is a lot going on with different product forms, so that’s why we made these bull heads.”​

Intersnack had also developed a limited edition variant of its Pom-Bear brand, set to launch in July for the school holidays.  The ‘Ampelmannchen’ snacks are shaped like the pedestrian traffic light men (ampel men) found in Eastern Germany before the Berlin wall came down. The pedestrian men have become a symbol of Berlin and point of nostalgia for many Germans throughout the country.

“I guess you have to be German to really understand it… But even more than 20 years after the wall came down, they are still very popular,”​ she said.  

“For Germans the snack is so emotionally appealing…I think it will appeal to children but what we know from Pom-Bear is our consumers are not only children – a lot of young women like the product because it’s lighter,”​ she added. 

Limited editions generate buzz​

Intersnack Germany will also launch a ‘summer’ grilled paprika variant of its Chio brand – the third largest potato chip brand in Germany – in May as a limited edition.

“If Chio brings out a new flavor what we found works really, really well is to launch limited editions. Not only do they sell well, they also generate a buzz and get people talking about it,”​ said Rosendahl.

“What works well then is flavors or concepts that are more emotional than the usual paprika,”​ she said.

Last year, for example, she said the ‘guys night out/girls night out’ Chio themed product did extremely well. “People just loved it; not only did they talk about it, they bought it, posted about it just because the concept was so emotional and everybody could relate to it.”​

Asked if Intersnack ever considered rolling out limited edition products as permanent SKUs if they were successful, she said: “Yes of course. But sometimes it’s the ‘limited’ that especially plays a big part in that effect.”​

NPD: Flavors versus shapes​

Rosendahl said Intersnack focused its new product development work on flavors and form, depending on the product type but there were some clear trends in flavors for 2015.

Sour cream and onion, she said, was a major taste trend in the snacking category and to tap into this Intersnack Germany had developed three sour cream and onion variants across its portfolio for its Chipsfrisch, Kruspers and Kessel Chips brand.

“We see that it’s a big trend; a trend for younger people especially,” ​she explained.