America's favorite treat is once again the most preferred Halloween treat for the tenth year running.
Chocolate is the most preferred Halloween treat for Americans, a new survey states. An interesting point considering today is the first day of fall. All those summer days with hot sun cost the candy manufacturers dark days while the soft drinks industry boomed. The food marketers can now celebrate ahead of a season that is characterized by three major holidays: Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. While the first holiday, Halloween is just about a month away, retailers and candy stores are already stocking up their shelves with candy in anticipation of ballooning sales.
A recent report by the National Confectioners Association (NCA) 2013 Annual Confectionery Performance Review, 2013 was a huge comeback year for players in the confectionery industry. Total sales for the industry reached a new high of $33.6 billion. This is the sixth year of continuous sales growth. And guess what the biggest and fastest grower was... chocolate. The chocolate delight grew the fastest at 3.6% vis a vis the same period in 2012.
Last year, the sales for seasonal Halloween chocolate candy reached a remarkable $217 million. It was a 12% increase from the chocolate sales of the same period in 2012. Such growth outperformed the purchases of similar seasonal chocolate for Christmas. It was, however, on par with similar gains marked during Valentine's Day.
In a show that is pretty much a reflection of the growing market for chocolate, 75% of United States households plan to hand out candy to trick or treaters. Additionally, 72% of Americans prefer chocolate as a treat for Halloween. Candy corn is a distant second with a meager 12%.
Similar surveys carried out have only led to the same conclusion. The average U.S market for chocolate grew 4% reaching a high of $21 billion in 2013. Every day over the counter chocolate remains the dominant brand on sale (83%). However, premium chocolate did enjoy a faster sales growth than every day chocolate.
