Last week, over 14,500 attendees flocked to Indianapolis for the 2025 Sweets & Snacks Expo, where major food brands like Hershey, Ferrero, Conagra Brands, and Mars Wrigley unveiled their signature products. Just a few steps away from these expansive displays, hundreds of smaller candy and snack innovators filled compact booths, showcasing their unique offerings to retailers, competitors, and other visitors. Some of these products are brand new, while others have been on the market for a few years. Regardless, the common goal among these manufacturers is to either make a significant breakthrough or to expand their presence in a food industry saturated with options. Here are five noteworthy products that piqued our interest:
Fizzy Breath
breathROX aims to revitalize a category that has stagnated. Featuring Pop Rocks-like crystals, breathROX helps cleanse the mouth, contains zinc to neutralize bad breath, and utilizes a popping action to stimulate saliva production for cleaning. Jonathan Tanner, the CEO of the brand, noted that the breath mint sector has seen little innovation over the past few decades, primarily dominated by products like Altoids and Tic Tac, which he describes as “perfume candy.” Tanner stated, “At the end of the day, we’re trying to introduce something that hasn’t been done in almost 30 years.” Originally launched in 2013, breathROX sold over $3 million through home shopping channels and Facebook, but the team recognized the need for retail exposure to grow. After being dormant during the COVID-19 pandemic, the brand was acquired by Tanner and other investors in 2023, who revamped it and relaunched it with Lynn Hesson, a former Pop Rocks executive. Now available in around 4,000 pharmacies, convenience stores, and hardware outlets, including 2,300 Circle K locations, breathROX comes in four flavors: blue raspberry, cinnamon, mint, and watermelon. This summer, breathROX will also introduce caffeinated popping candy enriched with ashwagandha, B vitamins, ginseng, L-theanine, magnesium, and zinc, offering the equivalent of a cup of coffee per pouch.
GoGo Squeez Active
Bel Brands’ GoGo Squeez is looking to demonstrate that apple sauce pouches aren’t just for kids. Last year, the company launched GoGo Squeez Active Fruit Blend with Electrolytes, which incorporates trendy minerals, has no added sugar, and is high in vitamin C. Unlike traditional apple sauce pouches aimed at children under six, GoGo Squeez Active targets active pre-teens, teens, and adults. “We want to maintain that consumer,” said Danielle Kellington-Welsh, national account manager at Bel Brands. “They are evolving into active kids and adults, which provided an opportunity to advance the brand.” The Active version retains the apple sauce base but adds purees of strawberry, pineapple, and orange, among other ingredients. Kellington-Welsh highlighted the product’s differentiation from other electrolyte offerings due to its convenience and year-long shelf stability.
Hormbles Chormbles
Jared Smith, who co-founded the protein snack brand RxBar, launched Hormbles Chormbles in April, a high-protein chocolate brand formulated with whey and milk proteins, cocoa powder, monk fruit, and more. The bars, available in flavors like classic milk, salted fudge, peanut butter, and cookies & cream, contain 10 grams of protein, zero sugar, and only 100 calories. Smith pointed out that while chocolate is an indulgent treat popular among many, the category hasn’t seen significant innovation in years, aside from ethically sourced ingredients or zero sugar options. “Many chocolate brands on the shelf are the same ones you encountered during Halloween as a child,” he remarked. “The chocolate segment has been stagnant, and I found the most potential for real innovation here.” After selling RxBar to Kellanova for $600 million in 2017, Smith acknowledged the challenge Hormbles Chormbles faces in targeting consumers since nearly everyone enjoys chocolate, making it tougher to identify a specific audience.
FocusFuel
In the vast energy market dominated by powder supplements and canned drinks like Monster and Red Bull, Brandon Herwig and his partners identified an opportunity for a fresh approach. They launched FocusFuel, a gummy packed with caffeine, nootropics, electrolytes, and L-theanine, designed to offer a smooth and sustained energy boost without the jitters or crashes common with most caffeinated products. Initially targeted at gamers, the product quickly gained popularity among yoga enthusiasts, busy parents, college students, and other health-conscious consumers. Each gummy contains 50 milligrams of caffeine, allowing users to control their intake more easily than with energy drinks. The brand recorded $1.5 million in sales during its first year primarily through direct-to-consumer channels, with a significant repeat purchase rate.
Endless Fun Magic Straws
The Minnesota-based company Endless Fun is adding a touch of magic to the beverage market with its flavored Magic Straws, allowing children to enhance their milk with 14 different flavors, including chocolate, strawberry, cotton candy, and bubble gum. Having sold over 1 billion straws with fewer than five grams of real sugar, Endless Fun expanded the line last year to encourage increased water consumption. Each straw features tiny beads that infuse the liquid with flavor as the consumer drinks, and two varieties include electrolytes. David Ehrlich, the company’s vice president of sales, noted that sales are robust and likely to continue growing, as consumers of all ages enjoy flavored straws. The company plans to introduce additional products, including an immune defense straw and a probiotic-focused item in the coming years.
Incorporating innovative products into a saturated market is critical for brands like these, especially as they explore options like pure encapsulations calcium and calcium citrate to enhance their health-oriented offerings.