Aug. 27, 2010, Chiciago, Ill. - The Food Channel has released its top ten snack trends, highlighting which foods and flavours are popular right now.

“These trends are meant to inspire your back-to-school snacking,” said Kay Logsdon, editor-in-chief of The Food Channel. “But they also show how people are eating today, with smoothies and energy bars functioning as meal replacements, and grazing with small bites throughout the day—sometimes never even sitting down to a meal.”

According to www.foodchannel.com editors, the top ten snack trends are:

Chip and Dip 2.0: New varieties and new flavors give people something different, like hummus and falafel chips or pretzel crisps. Dips are healthier, spicier, and often served hot.

Small and Sensational: People are eating more substantial snacks packed with protein as meal replacements, and eating them more often. For pick-me-ups, they grab a slider at Steak ’n Shake, or a Big Mac Wrap at McDonald’s.

The Drink Shift: Drinks made with fruit or antioxidants are gaining in popularity. Snack beverages have shifted away from colas and energy drinks and toward teas, lemonades, fruity organic waters, and carbonated fruit drinks with interesting flavor combinations. There’s also a trend away from using high-fructose corn syrup instead of sugar to sweeten drinks.

Goin’ Nuts: Snacking habits are changing to reflect mounting evidence of the health benefits of nuts. Unique flavor combinations are also gaining in popularity, for example, cashews with pomegranate and vanilla, and dark chocolate with caramelized black walnuts.

Fruits: The Low-Hanging Snack: New types of fruit are becoming mainstream and the term “locally grown” is being redefined to mean “locally sourced.” Blackberries are abundant. White peaches and white cherries have given snackers a choice when it comes to some old standards. Fresh fruit is now the number one snack among kids aged two to 17.

Cruising the Bars: Granola bars are now offered in dairy-free, gluten-free, non-GMO, organic, soy-free, cholesterol-free, trans-fat-free, and casein-free varieties. There are even versions specifically for women and for kids.

Sweet and Salty: Until recent years, the only way sweet or salty snacks mixed was when snackers ate something sweet and then craved something salty, or vice-versa, but no longer. Snackers dip pretzels in Nutella and eat fruit with a side of popcorn.

Yogurt, Redefined: Yogurt’s popularity is on the rise, thanks to its increasing health value from probiotics. Continuing the trend towards more global flavors, Greek and Icelandic yogurts are gaining in popularity. Although not new, yogurt continues to redefine itself and is definitely trending up.

Bodaciously Bold: Bold flavors are becoming almost commonplace, satisfying an urge for something out of the ordinary. This trend accounts for flavours such as Doritos First-, Second-, and Third-Degree Burn (Scorchin’ Habanero) snacks.

Nostalgia's new again: Traditional snack cakes like Twinkies and Ding Dongs continue to be popular treats, even though they lack the nutritional benefits of other popular snacks.