ASSESSING CONSUMER EXPECTATIONS FOR FOOD BARS BY CONJOINT ANALYSIS

Abstract

ABSTRACT Food bars, which include meal replacement, protein, granola and cereal bars, have rapidly increased in sales with current estimation of above $3.2 billion. Despite such rapid growth in the market, research on consumer expectations for these products is still lacking. Conjoint analysis was used to probe the effect of different elements of food bar products on purchase intent, including types of bar, ingredients, macro‐nutrients, health claims, calories and sensory characteristics. Overall, consumers wanted a food bar to be less than 150 kcal, made with whole grains and higher in protein. Consumers divided into four mind‐set segments were characterized as “Label Readers” (n = 213), “Calorie Health Nuts” (n = 90), “Flavor Energy Seekers” (n = 79) and “Chocolate Lovers” (n = 44). Sensory characteristics and types of bar categories were not important to consumers, although calorie elements played the largest role in motivating purchase intent for food bars.PRACTICAL APPLICATIONSThe results found from this research help to guide new product development in the food bar market by identifying the desires of specific consumer segments. Consumers were interested in food bar products with lower calorie content, which supports the idea that food bars are more typically consumed as a snack than a meal replacement. Half of the sample consumers tested belonged to the “Label Readers” segment. These consumers are interested in a healthful food bar product high in fiber. Development of a bar that is considered healthful would appeal not only to the “Label Readers” segment, but also to the “Calorie Health Nuts” segment. When developing a food bar product, the labeled bar type or sensory claims are not important to consumers. Consumers are more interested in the ingredients and caloric content of the food bar.