Earnings Per Share (Schedule of Earnings Per Share) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Oct. 03, 2015	Sep. 27, 2014	Oct. 03, 2015	Sep. 27, 2014
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Income from continuing operations attributable to Snyders's-Lance, Inc.	$ 15,677	$ 13,669	$ 43,642	$ 32,317
Less: Income from continuing operations allocated to participating securities	42	41	110	100
Income from continuing operations allocated to common shares	$ 15,635	$ 13,628	$ 43,532	$ 32,217
Weighted average shares outstanding – Basic	70,548	70,043	70,411	69,902
Basic earnings per share – Continuing Operations (in dollars per share)	$ 0.22	$ 0.19	$ 0.62	$ 0.46
Effect of dilutive securities on shares outstanding: Non-qualified stock options (shares)	771	735	723	727
Weighted average shares outstanding – Diluted (shares)	71,319	70,778	71,134	70,629
Diluted earnings per share – Continuing Operations (in dollars per share)	$ 0.22	$ 0.19	$ 0.61	$ 0.46