By Jill Failla
SPINS recently expanded its Packaging attribute in the Product Library to the REFRIGERATED YOGURT & KEFIR category, allowing for yet another nuanced view of new and emerging yogurt trends. Using this attribute, SPINS data shows that year-over-year sales for REFRIGERATED YOGURT & KEFIR products in glass jar and glass cup containers are up 26.1% and 847.8%, respectively, while those in plastic tub and plastic cup containers are down 0.3% and 5.5%. While these two plastic packaging types still dominate the category (with $6.5 billion in annual sales), glass is seeing strong growth, and we’re flagging it as a trend to watch.
SPINS predicts that in 2018, more and more brands will eschew plastic packaging, and this trend is reflected in our yogurt data. Reusable glass containers are more sustainable, eco-friendly, and safer for humans than plastics in some cases. Traders Point Creamery, for example, has embraced glass packaging for years and touts its glass yogurt jars as natural and 100% recyclable, requiring less energy and fewer natural resources than any other packaging material.
Many of these glass-contained yogurt products are created in a European style and marketed as such. For example, Yoplait debuted French-style yogurt called Oui this past summer. The whole-milk yogurt is poured into single-serve glass cups with fruit at the bottom and left to set for eight hours. Available in varieties like Black Cherry, Coconut, Peach, and Strawberry, the yogurts feature a front-of-label non-GMO claim and are free of artificial flavors and colors.
But traditional European-style yogurts aren’t the only type hitting the market in glass containers. Launched in 2016 and ramping up its distribution, The Coconut Cult’s flamingo-graced glass jars are quite the stars on Instagram and indeed seem to have racked up cult-level media attention in a short time span. These vegan yogurts, which come in Coconut Cream, Mango Cream, and Original varieties, contain 25 billion probiotics per serving (and are small-batch fermented with 800 billion probiotics in every quart), so the brand recommends starting with just a few spoonfuls and working your way up to a full bowl. It also warns that the jar may overflow (or explode!) upon opening due to the extremely active ingredients. Currently priced at about $25 a glass jar on its website, The Coconut Cult announced last month that it is working on developing single-serve packaging at a lower price point for future release.
Beyond yogurt, SPINS looks forward to seeing where else glass packaging will appear on the shelf in 2018. We expect to see this trend continue to grow, especially for health & wellness items from brands that prioritize eco-social concerns in other elements of their products. Keep tuned into SPINS to find out which category sustainable packaging developments pop up in next.
Only SPINS’ Product Library’s proprietary attribution can provide you with a granular look at the evolving and nuanced health & wellness trends transforming retail today. Want to know more? Contact your SPINS rep or email spinsinfo@spins.com to dig deeper into data on packaging and other hot retail topics affecting your business.
SPINSscan Natural and Specialty Gourmet (proprietary), SPINScan Conventional Multi Outlet (powered by IRI), 52 Weeks Ending 2017-Dec-03.
