Boxed chocolates and candies represent more than a quarter of all food given as gifts, making it the most prevalent edible gift among consumers, a leading market researcher says.
 
In the fifth edition of “Food Gifting in the U.S.,” Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, reports that 28 percent of consumers gave boxed chocolates and candies to someone else in the last 12 months. Other popular gift items include sweet baked goods, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and salty and nut-based snacks.
 
Since 2010, consumers have increasingly turned to food to meet their gifting needs for mainstay holidays, such as Christmas and Easter. For winter holidays, nearly half of adult consumers purchased food gifts for others, and 32 percent purchased food gifts for themselves, the report said.
 
Moreover, consumers continue to give food gifts to celebrate major milestones such as birthdays, graduations, weddings, and anniversaries, and “just because,” or to let loved ones know they are thinking about them.
 
Packaged Facts forecasts food gift sales will approach $18 billion in 2016, up 3.5 percent from last year. Most of the growth can be attributed to consumer sales, which are expected to rise 2.5 percent this year. Corporate sales are expected to grow by 4 percent, thanks, in part, to positive employment and corporate gift-giving trends.
 
The report, released earlier this month, assesses food gifters based on six years of proprietary data that show what they buy, for whom they purchase gifts, and how much they spend. The report also offers an in-depth look at prominent food gifting companies, including Russell Stover Candies, Godiva, and Lindt & Sprungli AG.
 
To purchase the report or for more information, including the table of contents and the abstract, visit the Packaged Facts website.
Boxed chocolates and candies represent more than a quarter of all food given as gifts, making it the most prevalent edible gift among consumers, a leading market researcher says.
 
In the fifth edition of “Food Gifting in the U.S.,” Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, reports that 28 percent of consumers gave boxed chocolates and candies to someone else in the last 12 months. Other popular gift items include sweet baked goods, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and salty and nut-based snacks.
 
Since 2010, consumers have increasingly turned to food to meet their gifting needs for mainstay holidays, such as Christmas and Easter. For winter holidays, nearly half of adult consumers purchased food gifts for others, and 32 percent purchased food gifts for themselves, the report said.
 
Moreover, consumers continue to give food gifts to celebrate major milestones such as birthdays, graduations, weddings, and anniversaries, and “just because,” or to let loved ones know they are thinking about them.
 
Packaged Facts forecasts food gift sales will approach $18 billion in 2016, up 3.5 percent from last year. Most of the growth can be attributed to consumer sales, which are expected to rise 2.5 percent this year. Corporate sales are expected to grow by 4 percent, thanks, in part, to positive employment and corporate gift-giving trends.
 
The report, released earlier this month, assesses food gifters based on six years of proprietary data that show what they buy, for whom they purchase gifts, and how much they spend. The report also offers an in-depth look at prominent food gifting companies, including Russell Stover Candies, Godiva, and Lindt & Sprungli AG.
 
To purchase the report or for more information, including the table of contents and the abstract, visit the Packaged Facts website.