Need a powerful protein boost to start the day? Or how about quick, portable snack before the next meal? Whatever the meal motivation, it’s clear that bar and cereal makers have been active to address trending forms, flavors and functions.

Despite inflationary concerns, Innova Market Insights tracking data show cereal and snack bar innovation grew in 2024 with new product launches up by just more than 1% versus the prior year. More specifically, cold cereal launches grew by more than 3% during the year while cereal and energy bars introductions grew by about 1%. Only hot cereal launches were down by just over 3% in 2024 versus the prior year.

Protein: Raise the Bar

Several trends drive bar innovation but protein is primary. And it’s interesting to see some non-traditional names—including chocolate companies, a cereal maker and a baker—launch new competitive products.

The Hershey Company kicked off this year with three new FULFIL Nutrition protein offerings and new extensions to its ONE Brands protein bar business. A new 1.94oz / 55g FULFIL bar (its “biggest”) comes in three flavors and features 20g protein, 2g of sugar and 3-4g of net carbs. Separately, Hershey reformulated its FULFIL Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar (in 55 and 40g sizes) so it features Reese's Peanut Butter as a branded ingredient. There also are two new FULFIL Protein Bites (Chocolate Salted Caramel, Chocolate Peanut Caramel). Each pouch has seven bites and delivers 16g of protein. Separately, Hershey enhanced its ONE Brands protein bar line with two branded ingredients: a Reese's Peanut Butter Flavor (18g protein) and a Hershey's Cookies ‘n’ Crème offering.

In another chocolate-related move, Designs For Health Inc., Palm Coast, Fla., extended its Fx Chocolate brand with Yes Whey!!!, chocolate supplement bar with 15g of whey and milk protein isolates and 2g of creatine monohydrate for skeletal muscle growth, strength, recovery, energy production and athletic performance. Speaking of athletes, 1440 Foods, New York, N.Y., extended its MET-Rx line with two flavors of Big 100 Granola Bars. Each 100g, 3.52oz bar delivers 5g of fiber and 28g of protein as a meal replacement.

In other moves, overnight oats maker MUSH Foods Inc., Chicago, introduced three refrigerated protein bars with 15g of protein per bar. Bakery giant Flowers Foods Inc., Thomasville, Ga., extended its Dave’s Killer Bread line with soft-baked Amped-Up Protein Bars delivering 10g of protein from organic hemp, pea and rice proteins.

Soft-baked texture is trending. Last summer saw General Mills, Minneapolis, emphasize this across several brands with new Nature Valley Soft Baked Breakfast Bars and Mott’s Soft Baked Bars. KIND Snacks, New York, N.Y., extended its soft-baked Breakfast Protein Bar line with an Apple Cinnamon flavor and Kellanova, Chicago, introduced a Rice Krispies Treats Chocolatey Peanut Butter variety. In other texture plays, General Mills launched Nature Valley Crispy Creamy Wafer Bars as well as Nature Valley YoBark, a chilled, yogurt-based “bark” snack in Strawberry and Honey Vanilla flavors. YoBark combines creamy yogurt with the crunch of granola.

Sometimes bars become “bites.” Last spring saw Kellanova introduce Nutri-Grain Power-Fulls soft-baked oat bites (Strawberry, Chocolate Chip). This year saw Mondelēz International introduce belVita Energy Snack Bites with 14g of whole grains per serving. January also marked the debut of Dave’s Killer Bread Organic Snack Bites in both sweet and savory flavors. Three sweet profiles include Cinna Roll, PB & Chocolate, and Honey Nut. Savory variants include Epic Everything, Toasted Garlic and Bold Buffalo. Savory profiles were among six new bar offerings last summer from KIND Snacks. Three varieties showcasing “Seeds, Fruits & Nuts” were Strawberry Sunflower Seed, Orange Cranberry Pumpkin Seed and Dark Chocolate Raspberry Pumpkin Seed. New savory bar flavors were Paprika Nuts & Mesquite Smoked Sea Salt, Roasted Nuts & Jalapeno, and Rosemary Nuts & Sea Salt.

One of last year’s more interesting new flavor lines hailed from YoungManDduk in Seoul, South Korea. It launched in Costco’s Midwest region with three Honey Oranda Snack Bars. They features puffed wheat blended with honey or syrup and each “strikes the perfect balance of bold toasted nuttiness and natural sweetness,” the company says. Varieties include Original Honey, Soybean, and Black Sesame.

How about bars for kids, those consumers always on the move? Once Upon a Farm, Berkeley, Calif., kicked off 2025 with two 1.6oz organic refrigerated protein bars—each with 8g protein from milk and whey, real fruits, vegetables, whole grain oats, and no-added sugar. Last year saw Skout Organic LLC, Austin, Tex., introduce several “small batch,” kids snack bar flavors, each with just five ingredients. Varieties were Mango Mayhem, Cinnamon Raisin and Cinnamon Snickerdoodle. It also partnered with New York Times best-selling cookbook author Caroline Chambers to launch Caro’s Beast Cookie Kids Bar. Last spring also saw active nutrition specialist Come Ready Foods LLC, Pittsburgh, break into the kids space. New Ready Clean Kids whole grain protein bars come with 6g of protein, 8g of whole grains, and 20% less sugar than other kids whole grain snack bars.

Several processors focused new offerings toward better-for-you benefits. Munk Pack Inc., Stamford, Conn., targeted digestive health with new Probiotic Protein Breakfast Bars. Each serving provides 10g protein, 18g-20g prebiotic whole grains and just 1g sugar. Varieties are Peanut Butter Chocolate, Cocoa Crisp, and Cinnamon Roll. This year saw Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams founder Jeni Britton launch Floura & Co., a Vineland, N.J., start-up with high-fiber Floura Fruit Crush Bars. Britton says Floura’s mission is “to address two challenges: the massive fiber deficiency affecting 95% of Americans and the 80 million tons of food wasted annually in the United States.” Floura’s approach is to incorporate upcycled ingredients—including watermelon rinds and seed free apple cores—and create bars delivering 13g of fiber from 12 whole plants in every bite. Five debut flavors are Brambleberry Lavender, Blueberry Matcha, Mango Cardamom, Raspberry Rose and Vanilla Rooibos.

Floura isn’t the only one with environmental appeal. Last spring saw General Mills introduce three Larabar Trail Mix bars that feature ingredient almonds sourced through regenerative farming. General Mills said it sourced 80,000 pounds of regenerative almonds for the Trail Mix Bars and hopes to expand to as many as 250,000 pounds of regenerative almonds in the future. One company combining environmental and social benefits is Act Bar, Los Angeles. It debuted last year with three vegan 1.94oz protein bars. Each incorporates upcycled grains (left over from beer brewing). Separately, for every sale, the company donates a meal to the Los Angeles Food Bank as well as a portion of sales to Brighter Bites, a national feeding program.

Grab a Spoon!

Cold cereal makers turned to flavor and indulgence to heat things up in their category. One fun new entry is Best Behavior Cereal, Beverly Hills, Calif. Last year saw it debut with three a “chef-crafted” adult cereals with flavors including Cinnamon Brioche, Mocha Latte and Blueberry Buttermilk.

General Mills pushed flavor in a range new offerings including a Friends Vanilla Bean Latte cereal inspired by the popular sitcom and its “Central Perk” gathering spot. General Mills kicked off last year with “Loaded” versions of its Trix, Cocoa Puffs, and Crunch brands. Among other new entries last year were Cinnamon Toast Crunch Waffle and Cheerios Oat Crunch Chocolate.

Others were active as well. WK Kellogg, Battle Creek, Mich., partnered with the Crumbl LLC bakery chain to bring “the gourmet dessert experience to breakfast tables” with Crumbl Chocolatey Chip Cookie cereal. Kicking off this year was Post Consumer Brands, St. Louis, which added Honey Bunches of Oats Chocolate, the first permanent addition to the brand in five years.

There are more ways to bring fun to the cereal aisle. WK Kellogg extended its colorful Kellogg’s Froot Loops brand with Rainbow Sherbet Scoops, which “cools your mouth” according to the package. Speaking of colorful, Boba Tea Protein, Dallas, extended its line with Boba Puffs in two flavors: Taro Milk Tea and Brown Sugar Tea. Each delivers 15g of protein per serving and the Taro delivers a purple milk experience. For that matter, granola specialist Soul Grain LLC, Minneapolis, also targeted purple with its Special Edition Sweet Potato Casserole Purple Grain Granola.

Granola and protein are having a moment thanks to processors including Nature’s Path Foods Inc., Vancouver, B.C.; Magic Spoon Inc., New York, N.Y.; Purely Elizabeth LLC, Boulder, Colo.; and KIND Snacks.

Purely Elizabeth extended its namesake Cookie Granola line with a Peanut Butter variety and last year saw KIND Snacks add Healthy Grains Banana Peanut Butter Clusters with Dark Chocolate Chunks. Those with larger plans were Nature’s Path and Magic Spoon. Each kicked off 2025 with new protein-forward granola lines. Nature's Path launched Love Crunch Protein Granola in two varieties: Organic Dark Chocolate & Almond and Organic Peanut Butter. Each delivers 10g of protein per serving along with 21g of organic whole grains. Magic Spoon introduced four varieties of Magic Spoon Protein Granola, each with 13–14g of protein per serving, just 2g of sugar, and 7–8g of fiber. Flavors include Honey Almond, Peanut Butter, Dark Chocolate Almond, and Mixed Berry.

Protein is trending as consumers crave the macronutrient. Per the International Food Information Council’s 2024 Food & Health Survey, 71% of Americans say they are trying to consume more protein. Among those addressing this trend was General Mills, which last spring launched a two-item Wheaties Protein line (Maple Almond, Honey Pecan) with 20g of protein per serving. General Mills then ended last year with two varieties of Cheerios Protein (Cinnamon, Strawberry), each with 8g of protein per serving.

Approaching health from another direction was Fresh Del Monte Produce N.A., Inc., Coral Gables, Fla. Last September brought its launch of Del Monte On-the-Go Oats, a three-item of 5.5oz ready-to-eat oats with added fresh-cut fruit. Varieties are Apples & Walnuts; Pineapple, Mango & Coconut; and Blueberries & Almonds. Each contains vanilla yogurt, oats, and up to 2oz of fresh-cut fruit per serving.

Some Like it Hot

New hot cereals embraced both consumer health and soil health as important themes. “Longevity” meals maker Blue Zones Kitchen, Austin, Tex., broke into the breakfast category last August with two Steel Cut Oatmeal offerings at Whole Foods: Blueberry and Peach Pecan. Both are gluten Free, Non-GMO and 100% plant-based with no refined sugars. Speaking of sweetness, Cargill extended its Truvia line (based on stevia, monk fruit sweeteners) with three Truvia Sweet Mornings Oatmeals. Each has 12g of protein and 0g of added sugar per serving.

What about consumer health—and soil health? Last September saw Nature’s Path launch a Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC) Flavored Oatmeal line in two flavors: Berries & Cream and Dark Chocolate & Cocoa. Both use regenerative organic certified oats and support Canadian farmers practices that improve soil health and biodiversity.

A trio of 2024 launches show that hot cereal isn’t all about oats. After debuting in 2023, ChiChi Foods LLC, St. Louis, grew its business with just one ingredient—chickpeas—and a line of cereals including Original, Maple Brown Sugar, and Apple Cinnamon varieties. Tilray Brands Inc., New York, N.Y., extended its Manitoba Harvest line last spring with new Superseed Oatmeal, which contains whole grain rolled oats along with shelled hemp seeds and flax seeds. Another start-up is Chicago’s Choputa, which debuted with three namesake ancient supergrain cereal featuring fonio. Varieties include Spice Kissed Apple, Maple Bliss Burst and Wild Berry Power.