2024-02-19 How a snack is born 一款新零食是如何诞生的

你最喜欢的零食是什么？从对人们饮食习惯和需求的调研，再到探索原材料，食品公司是怎样创新并研发出深受大家喜爱的零食的？这些公司在选择零食原材料时，通常需要考虑哪些因素？本文探讨新零食产品的灵感来源。

词汇：snacks 零食

Are you feeling peckish? Maybe it’s a while until your next meal, so perhaps now you’re thinking about reaching for a brightly coloured packet with something delicious inside. Maybe it’s time for a snack. You’re not alone, we all do it – but just how much work goes into developing and making the snacks that we all know and love?

First, companies have to work out what people have an appetite for. Traditionally, they might just have asked people about their snack habits. In today’s digital age, apps can ask customers to swipe right on the flavours they fancy. Companies can search the internet for every restaurant menu in a specific market, looking out for the latest taste trends and in-demand ingredients.

Snack trends also change over time. When British supermarkets were encouraged to remove unhealthy snacks from the shelves next to where people queue up, companies were quick to provide healthier treats. They can also reflect different histories of migration. One British snack company found that flavours common in South Asian cuisine sold well in the UK, but less so in the US, where there is less of a tradition of Indian food. And demand for more sustainability has led some entrepreneurs to experiment with using insects as an alternative source of protein for snacks. Other brands market themselves as offering a fairer price to the producers of the raw ingredients. 

Of course, what might seem like the perfect idea might not actually be that practical. Ingredients that work well in a restaurant, might not work on a biscuit or crisp. Snacks that contain a lot of fresh ingredients may have too short a shelf life to be a viable product. Some designs might need expensive packaging to protect them, which stops them being profitable.

There are many factors that influence our snacks. Those that are successful reflect our tastes and concerns but can be limited by the manufacturing process.

词汇表

peckish 有些饿的
meal （一顿）饭，餐
packet 小包，小袋
delicious 美味的
have an appetite for 对胃口，爱吃
flavour （食物或饮料的）口味，味道
menu 菜单
taste 味道
in-demand ingredient 热门的原料，需求量大的成分
treat 零食
cuisine 菜肴，烹饪
protein 蛋白质
raw ingredient 原材料
biscuit 饼干
crisp 薯片
fresh ingredient 新鲜食材
shelf life 保质期
packaging 包装，包装材料

测验与练习

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. What can companies search for to decide which new snacks to produce?

2. How did snack companies react to pressure to move unhealthy snacks in supermarkets?

3. True or False? South Asian cuisine is more popular in the US than the UK.

4. What could be an alternative protein source for snacks?

5. Why might fresh ingredients be a problem in snacks?

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. I have a snack when I’m feeling _______.

fresh               appetite              peckish            crisp

2. It’s good to share a _______ of biscuits.

packaging       appetite              menu               packet

3. You can really taste the _______ of this ice cream.

menu               crisp                   treat                flavour

4. Snack products with a short _______ can be impractical.

taste                menu                  appetite          shelf life

5. Interpersonal communication is one of the _______ skills that many employers look for when they hire new talents.

crisp                peckish              in-demand       treat

答案

1. 阅读课文并回答问题。

1. What can companies search for to decide which new snacks to produce?

Some companies search for every restaurant menu in a specific market.

2. How did snack companies react to pressure to move unhealthy snacks in supermarkets?

Snack companies started to offer healthier snacks.

3. True or False? South Asian cuisine is more popular in the US than the UK.

False. The snack company mentioned found it easier to sell snacks based on South Asian flavours in the UK.

4. What could be an alternative protein source for snacks?

Some entrepreneurs have tried using insects as a protein source for snacks.

5. Why might fresh ingredients be a problem in snacks?

Because fresh ingredients may have too short a shelf life for companies to be able to make a profit from them.

2. 选择意思恰当的单词或词组来完成下列句子。

1. I have a snack when I’m feeling peckish.

2. It’s good to share a packet of biscuits.

3. You can really taste the flavour of this ice cream.

4. Snack products with a short shelf life can be impractical.

5. Interpersonal communication is one of the in-demand skills that many employers look for when they hire new talents.