Ready-To-Eat Food Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

Ready-To-Eat Food Market - Growth, Trends, Covid-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2023 - 2028)

The global ready-to-eat food market is projected to register a CAGR of 4.89%, during the forecast period of 2022-2027.

Ready-to-eat food products turned into one of the few industries that witnessed a surge in immense demand during the COVID-19 pandemic. With countries on lockdown and most people working from home, ready-to-cook food products were flying off the shelves over the last few months. One of the India-based online grocery stores named Grofers even reported a sale surge of 170% in the ready-to-eat category, 31% in the ready-made meals and mixes category, and 41% in the frozen food category in 2020, indicating a sudden consumer shift from home-cooked food to ready-to-eat products. In fact, it is speculated that this change in consumer behavior is likely to uplift the market studied significantly in the forecast period.

Young consumers spend most of their income on convenient ready-to-eat food products. Young consumers are the easiest targets for ready-to-eat food manufacturing giants. The convenience level of such products helps to increase the total demand in the market across the world.

Ready-to-eat food products are being considered as the closest alternative to regular food, which can be consumed at any time (such as during breakfast, lunch, or dinner). The initiatives taken by regulatory authorities, like ongoing promotional efforts undertaken by the Singapore Health Promotional Board to create awareness regarding frozen ready to eat foods and fish products, are driving the market growth.

Key Market TrendsReady Meals Segment is Driving the Overall Ready-to-Eat Food Market

The growth of the ready meals market is driven by the increase in the convenience offered, in terms of time-saving, and the little effort required for the preparation of these meals. Moreover, the preference for these meals by the working population and millennials has increased, owing to the fact that they only require heating before consumption, which reduces the overall effort. ​With the increasing demand, manufacturers are focusing on developing innovative products to capture the demand and to achieve major market shares. For instance,​ in 2020, Freshly Inc., the meal delivery service acquired by Nestle SA, launched a new product line for consumers “looking to command their health and fuel active lifestyles,”. FreshlyFit ready-to-eat meals are inspired by attributes of keto, paleo and plant-based diet principles. The offerings are gluten-free, clean label, made with whole-food ingredients and may be heated and served in three minutes.

Asia-Pacific Holds the Major Share

The market for ready-to-eat food in the Asia pacific region is mainly driven by the increasing demand for frozen pizza and handheld breakfast. These are positioned as low-cost products with quality and freshness. Moreover, these meals have gained equal popularity as the foods found in restaurants and foods found in other food outlets. Chilled ready meals and frozen ready meals are also one of the most consumed categories of ready-to-eat food in the country. In addition, companies operating in the market are focusing on adopting strategic measures to achieve a strong foothold in the country, driving the market growth.

Further, the increasing female workforce in Asian countries has become another reason for uplifting the market at a rapid pace. In Asia, female labor force participation ranges from 16% in Afghanistan to 83% in Nepal and growing more in other Asian countries. The consumers’ perception toward ready meals is constantly improving where convenience and high-speed cooking time is ideal for Chinese consumers.

Competitive Landscape

The global ready-to-eat food market is highly competitive with the presence of key players operating in the market, such as Nomad Foods Ltd, General Mills, McCain Foods, Premier Foods Group Ltd, and Conagra Brands. High industrial profitability has led manufacturers to develop powerful competitive strategies, which is intensifying the competition among the existing market players. Major players are intensely embarking on product innovation as their prime strategy to consolidate the market. For instance,​ in 2019, M&S Food (Marks & Spencer) became one of the major food retailers in United Kingdom to launch a range of own-brand halal-ready meals. In response to the increasing demand for a halal diet, customers will be able to shop a range of six Halal Food Authority (HFA)-certified prepared meals available from 36 M&S stores.​

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