Snacking: A Trend to Chew On

When guests drop in for tea or when we’re taking a trip; packing our child’s school tiffin or when we

suddenly feel hungry at work – how easily we reach for a packet of wafers, namkeen or murukku.

Snacking is certainly on the rise in India as disposable incomes grow and busy lifestyles create a need

for readymade convenience. Furthermore, modern automatic packaging machines assure hygiene

and freshness while smaller-sized packs provide mobility and affordability, and reduce wastage.

As per an article in The Economic Times, Indian consumers seem to have re-discovered their taste

for traditional snacks such as farsan, bhujia and namkeen - going by the impressive growth rate of

local firms such as Balaji Wafers, Haldirams and Bikanervala at a time when their multinational rivals

are struggling.

There was a time when branded salty snacks

were mostly potato chips. However, players

now offer new products like extruded snacks

besides expanding their traditional snacks

offerings, e.g. Murukku, Chakali, Mathri,

Gathiya, Samosas, Daal, Farsan Mixtures, etc.

which has seen several consumers upgrade

from the unbranded market to branded

products. Also, given the increasing concerns

surrounding ‘unhealthy’ snacking, players

have positioned brands and products around

‘health’, e.g. baked, roasted, multigrain, low

fat, etc. to reach out to the health-conscious

segments.

According to a recently released TechSci

Research report, extruded snacks market in

India is projected to grow at a CAGR of more

than 11% during 2016-2021. Children and

young population are the primary buyers of

extruded snacks and they are also the target

consumer segments for the major players

operating in the market.

Major players operating in this market include PepsiCo, Prataap Snacks, ITC, Balaji and Bikanerwala.

In 2015, PepsiCo grabbed the lion’s share in the country’s extruded snacks market, and the company

is expected to continue its dominance through 2021.

In this scenario of product innovations and easy availability which fuels growing demand, the

packaged snack market continues to offer exciting growth prospects for manufacturers. Indian

consumers are increasingly inclined to well-packaged snacks which are associated with greater

credibility, longer shelf life and better product quality. More snack companies are selling their

products across the whole of India, and are even exporting them to countries abroad.

Enter Nichrome, the leading snacks packaging machine manufacturer, who innovated India’s first

indigenous counter bagger ‘Snackpack’. Nichrome continuously innovates and adapts technology to

cater to the growing and diverse needs of the snacks industry. Nichrome’s Vertical Form Fill Seal

(VFFS) Snackpack is a speedy potato chips packing machine solution that also packs extruded snacks

and other products with efficiency. Snackpack takes the inherent fragility and odd shapes of snack

foods into account while ensuring minimised costs and a highly efficient packaging process.

Nichrome’s Snackpack automatic snack packaging machine delivers speeds of up to 150 CSPP packs

per minute. The gas-filled pouches provide protection for brittle products such as potato chips, while

the vertical concept of the packaging solution helps to speed up the process.

Snackpack is an ideal snack packing machine designed for quick and easy tool-less changeover of

size parts resulting in minimum product falling height. Its perforation system makes it possible to

produce a chain of pouches, and its unique stripping action before cross sealing avoids product

entrapping in seal.

Apart from offering versatility and efficiency, Nichrome’s Snackpack machines have also been

designed to ease operational and maintenance challenges. Operations are simplified and to facilitate

maintenance, they are also equipped with servo-technology that helps to reduce and eliminate

technical errors.

Besides snacks, Nichrome’s Snackpack is also suited for dry fruit pouch packaging, biscuit packaging

and for retail packaging of other products like Wrapped Candies, Macaroni, Biscuits, Pasta, Seeds,

Breakfast Cereals, etc. Nichrome assures the latest packaging solutions that protect the product

quality and endure the toughest stages of the distribution chain, including shipments and other

handling options.

For more information visit:- http://www.nichrome.com