Back in the day, what was then called TV dinners came in aluminum trays that were heated in the oven. These TV dinners usually consisted of a cut of meat, a vegetable and sometimes a dessert.
But, that’s all in the history report. Welcome to the future. The packaging is clean. The ingredients are clean. The varieties are aplenty. That’s because the frozen meals and entrées section has gone on one excellent adventure.
Today’s prepared foods continue to present a major opportunity for retailers. That’s because roughly 80% of all consumers report purchasing prepared meals at least once a month, and 55% of consumers eat prepared foods within an hour of purchase, according to “2017 Retailer Meal Solutions Consumer Trend Report,” released by Technomic, Chicago.
“[Retailer meal solutions] will continue to steal share from the fast food segment, however, the addition of seating areas, bars and expanded made-to-order offerings means retailers will also increasingly compete with sit-down restaurants,” says Kelly Weikel, director of consumer insights for Technomic. “Price, décor and ambiance will be key battlegrounds moving forward, as RMS operators increase efforts to become hangout destinations and increasingly offer higher-quality fare such as scratch-made pizzas and smoothie bars.”
According to a report produced by Future Market Insights, Valley Cottage, N.Y., the demand for frozen ready meals is expected to witness steady demands in the foreseeable future. However, the report also addresses that shortcomings in the global cold chain and growing complexities in the production of frozen ready meals will continue to act as market growth impediments.
Key findings from the report reveal that the global frozen ready meals market will expand at a moderate CAGR of 4.3% and bring in estimated revenues worth over $47 billion.
The report also reveals that chicken meals will be a top-selling product in the overall frozen ready meals landscape, and that a majority of market players will concentrate their production in the Asia-Pacific, excluding Japan (APEJ) region.
