It probably comes as no surprise, but we Americans sure do love our candy, snacks and convenience frozen foods. Just envisioning the average supermarket layout, you can count three, four or more aisles given over to these product categories.

What's this have to do with converting? Well, based on data from the just-released Leading Edge Report on "Converted Flexible Packaging," candy, snacks and frozen foods are today's fastest growing end-use markets for your finished products. And will continue to be through 2005.

The report, compiled by Commack, NY-based Business Trend Analysts, says that total U.S. flex-pack demand reached $10.8 billion in 1999 and should climb to about $13.6 billion in 2005. All types of substrates will see growth over the next few years with the now-perennial exception of cellophane and aluminum foil.

Two-thirds of the market, though, is food flex packs, and more importantly, this area is projected to grow a healthy 4.16 percent a year over the 1999-2005 period. BTA forecasts food flex-pack sales will hit $8.7 billion in 2005. What about those top categories? Average annual growth predicted by the study includes 3.7 percent for candy, 3.6 percent for frozen foods and 3.5 percent for snacks.

The role of packaging is still primarily one of food preservation, but now "its requirements have expanded to include processing, marketing and even the cooking of food," the report says. Numerous flex-pack innovations pioneered by the converting industry and its suppliers include breathable films for fresh-cut produce; thin, formable, cook-in film packs for meats and vegetables; recloseable and dispenser-adapted standup pouches; and metallized, microwaveable wraps and lidding.

Equal to its benefits as lightweight protection is food flex pack's role as a marketing tool. "Packages make persuasive statements and differentiate a product from others closely packed on retail shelves," BTA says. Most flex packs easily support brand-name recognition and enhance advertising programs.

And that's where the role of the converter and package designer comes in. Yes, we sure do love our junk food, and we sure do love the convenience of frozen foods, but we don't have to buy them.

Keeping sales of these categories high for now and in the future is certainly, in part, the job of the flexible materials they're packaged in. And differentiating one chips bag from another in that 80-ft-long aisle of snacks is quite a challenge, but I think converters are up to it.