Cookie and Cracker Manufacturers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 347 cookie and cracker manufacturers in the US produce crackers and biscuits, cookies, wafers, and ice cream cones. The industry is comprised of independent manufacturers that produce and sell their own brands, and contract manufacturers that produce and package products for customers under the customer’s brand(s).
Changing Consumer Diets
Demand for cookies and crackers can change with consumer diets and fads.
Food Safety Regulations
Like other food production operations, cookie and cracker manufacturers are subject to regulations regarding food handling, storage, contamination, allergens, and package labeling.
Industry size & Structure
A typical cookie and cracker manufacturer operates out of a single location, employs fewer than 20 workers, and generates about $31 million annually.
- The cookie and cracker manufacturing industry consists of about 350 companies which employ about 30,000 workers and generate around $11 billion annually.
- About 89% of firms have just one production facility. About 46 firms are large, employing 100 or more workers each.
- The industry is highly concentrated with the 8 largest firms representing 69% of revenue.
- Customer industries include food distributors, grocery stores, mass merchandisers, drug and discount stores, restaurants, caterers, and snack shops.
- Large companies include Mondelez International (Oreo, Ritz, Nabisco), Kellogg’s (Town House), Campbell Soup Co. (Pepperidge Farms, Snyder’s Lance, Archway) and Nestle (Toll House). Some large manufacturers are highly diversified and produce a wide variety of foods and beverages in addition to cookies and crackers.
- Contract manufacturers include Hearthside Foods, Western Baking Corporation, Oakhouse Bakery, and Richmond Baking.
Industry Forecast
Cookie and Cracker Manufacturers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Jan 20, 2025 - Prices Flat Amid Falling Sales
- The producer price index for cookie and cracker manufacturers, which measures prices before reaching consumers, remained relatively flat in November compared to a year ago after rising 2.6% in the previous November-versus-November annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. At the retail level, cookie prices rose 2.5% year over year in November and inched up 0.1% versus October, while cracker prices crumbled 1.6% YoY and were down 4.6% from October, per the BLS. Food industry sales declined by 8.3% in Q3 2024 compared to a year earlier and dipped 0.6% versus Q2, according to the latest Census Bureau data. Employment by the industry dipped 0.7% in October, while average wages at bakeries and tortilla manufacturers rose 2.5% over the same period to $22.10 per hour, just shy of their record high in August, BLS data show.
- A new rule proposed in the waning days of the Biden administration would require food manufacturers to display new labels on the front of packages flagging key nutrition information on salt, added sugar, and saturated fat, The Wall Street Journal reports. The new rule proposed by the Food and Drug Administration in January is meant to help US consumers make healthier dietary choices. The new labels, dubbed a “nutrition info box,” would appear on the front of packages, according to WSJ. The agency currently requires most packaged foods to display a nutritional label, usually on the back or side of the box. The FDA said it would accept public comments on its proposal until May 16. If the rule is finalized, food manufacturers would be required to add the new labels to most packaged food products three to four years after it takes effect.
- A new California law intended to help consumers avoid throwing out edible food will require changes to labels on packaged foods including cookies and crackers, Supermarket News reports. The bill, AB 660, was signed in September and takes effect in 2025. It requires manufacturers to include “Best If Used By” and “Use By” labels on packaged food. Currently, more than 50 phrases are used on date labels for food products to communicate freshness causing confusion among consumers and generating needless waste. In addition to the new label requirements, consumer-facing “Sell By” labels will be prohibited to reduce confusion. “The inconsistent use of phrases like ‘Sell By,’ ‘Expires On,’ ‘Freshest Before,’ and others makes for an impossible-to-navigate system for consumers who don’t want to throw away good food or make their families sick,” said Erica Parker, a policy associate with Californians Against Waste.
- Sales of private-label products reached record-high market shares in both units and dollars in the first half of 2024 and are on track to top $250 billion for the year, according to Circana data released by the Private Label Manufacturers Association in June. Unit market share for private brands climbed to 22.9% of total unit volume, and dollar market share grew to 20.4% of total sales as of June 16, PLMA reported. Store brand sales for the first six months of 2024 totaled $121 billion, up 2.3% compared to a year ago. National brand sales grew at half that rate, up just 1.1%, over the same period. Private label growth was widespread throughout the store, with nine of the 10 store departments tracked by Circana posting private label dollar sales growth for the 52 weeks ending June 16, including general food, up 6.9%.
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