Q2 2024 Report: China's Snack Food Market Trend Insights

Key Finding 1

China's online snack food market reached CN¥ 136.5B in MAT2024, rebounding +8.6% YoY with unit volume surging +26.8% YoY. Nuts and roasted snacks (+19.8% YoY) and savoury snacks (+17.3% YoY) led the recovery, while average selling prices fell as brands pursued volume-driven growth strategies.

The broader food and beverage e-commerce market delivered CN¥ 459.99B in sales (+17.9% YoY) across China's leading marketplaces and content-led commerce channels, confirming that online channels continue to capture consumer spending from offline retail. Within this landscape, snack food commands the largest category share at CN¥ 136.5B, with its high purchase frequency, low unit price, and strong consumption demand driving sustained market expansion. The market is characterised by a clear "trading down" dynamic: average selling prices fell -11.3% YoY to CN¥ 31.6 across food and beverage, while unit volume rose +24.4% YoY, indicating consumers are buying more but paying less per item.

Three macro trends are reshaping the snack food landscape: first, consumption scenarios are fragmenting, with "late-night snacking" emerging as a high-growth occasion (+75.0% content e-commerce growth); second, consumer demand is diversifying beyond taste satisfaction toward functional benefits such as stress relief, sleep support, and calcium supplementation; third, texture preferences are evolving, with crispy, soft-and-chewy, and "bursting filling" textures commanding premium social media engagement and sales performance.

Key Finding 2

The biscuit and puffed snacks segment delivered CN¥ 177.7B in MAT2024, a marginal -1.2% YoY decline as average price erosion (-6.7% YoY) offset volume growth (+5.9% YoY). Biscuits account for 60.2% of the segment and grew +1.5% YoY, while puffed snacks contracted -5.2% despite +21.0% volume growth.

Market competition is intensifying, as concentration among the ten largest brands fell over the year. However, health-oriented products are bucking the trend, with one sugar-free biscuit growing +30.7% YoY and one whole grain rice cracker surging +43.8% YoY. The high-growth brand analysis reveals two dominant product themes: "real ingredients" (brands that prominently display core ingredient content percentages) and "healthy formulas" (zero added sugar, zero additives, whole grain positioning). Content-led commerce is a major sales channel for many of the fastest-growing biscuit and puffed snack brands.

Key Finding 3

The candy market reached CN¥ 78.7B in MAT2024 (+4.7% YoY) with unit volume growing +13.1% despite a -7.4% average price decline. Gummy/gelatin candy, mint candy, and chewing gum dominate with a combined 50%+ share of sales and +20.3% YoY growth, while niche categories including caramel (+166.7%) and marshmallow/nougat (+52.2%) are breakout performers.

The candy market's competitive landscape remains fragmented, with the largest brands each holding a modest share of sales. The most dynamic growth is coming from brands offering fresh, cooling, and functional benefits, with one gum brand growing +28.5% YoY, one mint candy brand +19.9%, and one tea-infused candy brand +348.8% YoY. Chinese herbal and botanical ingredients are an emerging growth vector, with sugar-free gum maintaining strong momentum even on a high base.

Key Finding 4

The bakery and pastry segment reached CN¥ 252.5B in MAT2024 (+6.1% YoY), with Chinese-style pastry capturing 50.4% of the market for the first time -- overtaking Western-style pastry. Buffalo milk-based bakery products surged +613.4% YoY as health-conscious consumers trade up to premium dairy ingredients. No brand holds more than 3.3% of the category's sales, reflecting extreme fragmentation.

The "Chinese stomach" consumer trend is accelerating: traditional pastries including egg yolk puff (蛋黄酥) and eight-treasure cake (八珍糕) are experiencing renewed demand, while Poria eight-treasure cakes exemplify the new Chinese-style wellness pastry category. Buffalo milk has emerged as a breakthrough ingredient, with brands such as Tangxiaomai (棠小麦) and Carlton (卡尔顿) developing buffalo milk bakery products. Carlton's buffalo milk thick-cut toast substitutes traditional dairy with buffalo milk to deliver richer protein content and creamier flavour, meeting the evolving nutritional expectations of Chinese consumers.

Key Finding 5

Nuts and roasted snacks reached CN¥ 238.4B in MAT2024, rebounding +19.8% YoY from a -11.4% decline in the prior period. Spring Festival (Chinese New Year) remains the dominant sales peak, with content-led commerce carrying a substantial share of volume during the January 2024 holiday period. The "additive-free" sub-segment grew +20.7% YoY as health-conscious consumers seek unprocessed, natural products.

Concentration is higher than in the other snack segments, though no brand holds more than 15.0% of sales. Mixed nuts/daily nuts, sunflower seeds, and macadamia nuts are the top three sub-categories by sales, with mixed nuts expanding its share to 25.9%. The additive-free/zero-additive trend is gaining mainstream traction, with brands such as Wolong (沃隆), Laojiekou (老街口), and Miguo (觅菓) adopting this health-premium positioning. Meiguoshiguang's (每果时光) additive-free macadamia nuts exemplify the category innovation, sourcing from dedicated Australian farms and using minimal processing to preserve nutritional value.