Washington — Walking the grocery aisles, you can now find protein in everything from cookies to water for one very good reason: consumer demand. According to the 2025 IFIC Food & Health Survey, nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults now intentionally incorporate protein into their diets. It has surged past ‘fresh’ and ‘low sugar’ as the number one quality consumers say defines a “healthy” food. Even the new food pyramid out of the U.S. Health and Human Services department doubles the recommended intake.
But this isn’t just theoretical, survey-based rhetoric. Companies are seeing demonstrable results. General Mills credited its protein lines with more than $100 million in sales in its 2024 fiscal year. Challenger ice cream brand Protein Pints surged from less than $100,000 in revenue in 2024 to more than $20 million in 2025. Its cookie dough flavor was selling more than 10 units per week per store at Target at the time.
These real-world examples seem to light a surefire path to growth, something that has not been easy to grasp in the modern health era. Whether motivated by peers, new injectable medications, or some other means, shoppers are increasingly wellness minded, creating significant headwinds for brands typically associated with serving our cravings rather than our nutritional needs.
The thinking is not all wrong. After all, Kantar’s Defining Better: Modern Health Deep Dive study shows that high protein outstrips all other attributes, with nearly two in five shoppers rating it as a must-have.
But as with most big topics, the impacts of proteinmaxxing do not fall evenly across categories, as shoppers approach snacks and sweets with different motivations, thresholds for effort, and definitions of what makes a product “better.”
Understanding these nuances is essential for anyone trying to win in today’s modern snacking landscape.
Protein Isn’t a Universal Fix
Protein chips have been on the market for longer than one might expect, starting with Quest Nutrition’s take on providing a solution to the post-workout munchies. They are now expected to break out on the A-brand scene with PepsiCo’s Doritos rendition.
While the output, both in taste and texture, remains to be seen, there is reason for caution: wellness-minded salty snack shoppers aren’t necessarily interested in protein-boosted products.
Less than one-third of better-for-you salty snack shoppers list high protein as a must-have attribute, and over half that do consider it a “must have” will simply go without if they cannot find their desired product.
What is important to the these salty snack shoppers? Removing unhealthy additives.
These shoppers would rather see products “without” — without high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners or preservatives, or artificial colors and dyes.
Focusing on natural chips that eliminate as much processing as possible will go a longer way toward securing spend than artificially boosting nutrients. For salty snack manufacturers, the next wave of innovation will likely come from simplifying ingredient stories rather than augmenting nutritional ones.
This contrast becomes even clearer where shoppers are actually open to protein-forward formulations.
The Chocolate Exception
So, where is high protein more welcome in the world of snacking? Oddly enough, it’s chocolate. While still a smaller share than all wellness minded shoppers, more of these chocolate shoppers list high protein as a must-have than any other attribute. Why the difference?
Some of it might be attributable to format. Chocolate often comes in bar format, just like a protein bar, and this easily translatable trade has lent itself well to crossovers, from the likes of Hershey’s Snickers bar with higher protein to its ONE Reese’s-flavored protein bars.
But there are other possibilities that could explain the gap: time and effort.
Snacking is a much more frequent and intentional consumption activity than consuming chocolate for many shoppers, with snacks often serving as mini-meals or meal accompaniments. In other words, consumption is strongly married to other parts of the grocery aisle that allow shoppers to meet their protein needs without buying higher protein chips.
Chocolate, meanwhile, tends to stand on its own. It’s a dessert, a treat, and therefore the desire to optimize is stronger.
Salty snack and chocolate shoppers likewise differ in their interpretation of effort.
Wellness minded chocolate shoppers tend to feel it takes more effort to buy a better-for-you product, while the salty snack shoppers are much less likely to feel the same. This makes something like a ‘high protein’ label an easy win for a chocolate shopper who just wants something quick and easy, while a salty snack shopper requires no such cue.
As chocolate continues to straddle indulgence and functionality, clear, low-effort cues may become a competitive differentiator in a crowded shelf set.
These are material differences that should not be ignored when developing a protein strategy. Taken together, these findings suggest that future growth will depend on aligning protein claims with the category’s natural consumption role, not forcing a one-size-fits-all health narrative.
What To Do Next
Despite protein’s cultural momentum, its impact is far from uniform. It all comes down to role.
Salty snacks brands succeed by minimizing both ingredients and nutritional harm, in order to satisfy a shopper simply seeking a crunch to pair with their meal. Recognize the job to be done here and prioritize ‘free-from’ over fortification.
Chocolate brands, meanwhile, earn permission to experiment. Leaning into format familiarity while respecting the effort gap with plain cues will win the day.
These distinctions underscore the simple truth: category roles, not universal health trends, determine whether protein enhances or erodes value. Brands that design with those roles in mind will be best positioned in the modern health era.
Contributor Info: Gina Logan is associate director of category insights at Kantar Group, where she leads research that helps brands and retailers decode shopper behavior and unlock growth. With a background in data storytelling, she translates insights into actionable, shopper-first strategies. She can be reached at gina.logan@kantar.com.
