SIAL Shanghai 2024 believes that the casual snack industry is ushering in a big change: the competitive pattern of snack brands has changed, and cost-effectiveness will become one of the keys to the next stage of competition for traditional casual snack brands.

Liangpinpuzi, which has always positioned itself as a high-end snack vendor, announced a price cut, with an average price reduction of 22% for 300 products and a maximum reduction of 45%. Liangpinpuzi staff said, its  offline stores in the southern part of the country have begun to implement price reductions. The price cut is only for offline stores. Online channels are not involved.

The same emphasis on cost-effective can be seen in the brand Three Squirrels. Since last March, Three Squirrels has been focusing on the implementation of the "high-end cost-effective" core strategy, to create "all channel + all categories" business model, through the supply chain optimization of the whole chain, to ensure that the quality of products while achieving profit margins. Through the optimization of the whole chain of supply chain, it can ensure the quality of products and realize the profit overflow at the same time, and transfer this part of profit into discount for consumers, so as to realize the high quality and cost-effectiveness at the same time.

Two high-end casual snacks brands are becoming more consumer-friendly, which is regarded as a signal that casual snacks industry is entering a low-price era. AiMedia consulting survey data show that China's casual food industry market size is expected to reach 12,378 billion yuan in 2027. The market of casual food industry will shift from a rapid incremental mode into a slow but steady increase.

Industry experts believe that the casual snacks track has entered the "parity" cycle, change is the inevitable choice.

In the view of China's food industry analyst Zhu Danpeng, as the heads of the snack industry brands such as Liangpinpuzi cut their price, other snack brands may also pursue the layout of cost reduction and efficiency enhancement. Through the continuous optimization of the supply chain for cost control, brands can improve the operational efficiency of the store, which is the future development trend of the snack industry.

Zhu Danpeng said, seeing from the consumer environment and development trend, China's casual snack industry has entered the affordable price cycle. The price cut of Liangpinpuzi, Three Squirrels and other headline brands will accelerate the supply chain optimization, improve store operations and other aspects to realize "cost reduction and efficiency enhancement". The large-scale price cuts of Liangpinpuzi is expected to bring about a continuous response from the industry, and the industry is expected to enter the era of discount snacks.

SIAL Shanghai 2024 believes that the price cut of snack food enterprises is for the survival in market competition, but it is also conducive to grabbing more market share. Head snacks brands can cut their cost through industrial chain optimization as well as its own scale effect, so price reduction won’t be a problem for them. From a strategic point of view, appropriate price concessions by enterprises will also lead to sales growth.