Sales of specialty foods and beverages across all retail and foodservice channels neared $194 billion in 2022, up 9.3% over 2021, and are expected to reach $207 billion by year's end, according to the Specialty Food Association's (SFA) annual State of the Specialty Food Industry Report.
The resilient specialty food industry continues to thrive despite weathering challenges since 2020.
The specialty market is composed of 63 food and beverage categories which combined account for nearly 22% of retail food and beverage sales. Chips, pretzels, snacks was the highest-selling specialty food category at retail in 2022, moving up from third place in 2021 and becoming the first specialty category ever to exceed $6 billion in annual sales.
The top 10 specialty food and beverage categories for 2022 in retail sales were:
- Chips, pretzels, snacks
- Meat, poultry, seafood (Frozen, refrigerated)
- Cheese and plant-based cheese
- Bread and baked goods
- Coffee and hot cocoa, non-RTD
- Entrees (Refrigerated)
- Chocolate and other confectionery
- Water
- Desserts (Frozen)
- Entrees, lunch, dinner (Frozen)
Two top-selling categories in 2022 - Entrées (Refrigerated) and Chocolate and other confectionery - also were among the Top 10 Fastest-Growing Specialty Food and Beverage Categories in 2022:
- Energy and sports drinks
- Tea and coffee, RTD (Refrigerated)
- Entrées (Refrigerated)
- Breakfast foods (Frozen)
- Cream and creamers (Refrigerated, Shelf stable)
- Chocolate and other confectionery
- Baby and toddler food
- Cookies and snack bars
- Soda
- Appetizers and snacks (Frozen)
Now in its 20th year, the annual State of the Specialty Food Industry research is an examination of market size and sales; dollar and unit sales growth; and specialty food category penetration. The report also contains individual 10-year tracking and forecasting in 35 key categories, including strengths, weaknesses, and trends for each category.
