Frozen Ready Meals - UK -The Consumer – Attitudes and Behaviours

                         

Frozen Ready Meals - UK -The Consumer – Attitudes and Behaviours

Next Mintel went onto ask the same 1,032 consumers about their attitudes towards frozen ready meals. The actual question asked was:

“[And secondly] which of these aspects do you feel apply more to frozen ready meals than chilled?”

The topline results are shown next.

FIGURE 31: Attitudes towards frozen ready meals, October-November 2005

	All	Frozen ready meal purchasers
Base:	1,032 adults aged 15+	625 adults aged 15+
	%	%
Better for keeping in stock at home	33	41
Ideal as a standby	19	25
Cheaper	18	21
Often on special offer	13	16
Simpler to cook in the microwave	10	14
Quicker to cook	8	10
More variety/better range	7	10
Ideal for kids	5	1
Fewer preservatives	3	3
Healthier	3	4
Better tasting	3	3
More expensive	3	3
More nutritious	2	1
Bigger portion sizes	2	3
Better packaging	2	2
Higher-quality ingredients	1	1
More authentic	1	1

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

Women and pre-/no family consumers hold the most positive views

Consumers generally do not feel positively about frozen ready meals. While fewer women than men are frozen ready meal buyers, they tend to have a more positive outlook. As women still hold the role of family cook and still tend to be the main shopper for the whole family, they are more aware of the practical aspects such as the standby potential, ease of cooking and breadth of special offers, and are often shopping on a family budget. Men tend to grocery shop differently: they are much more routine- and habit-driven and as such they are less likely to be taken in by special offers in this market (unless it is on their favoured brand). Instead men generally tend to know exactly what they are going to buy before they start shopping.

FIGURE 32: Attitudes towards frozen ready meals, by lifestage, October-November 2005

Base: 1,032 adults aged 15+

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

Families are less positive

Those in the pre-/no family lifestage are most likely to agree with many of the statements. Here families and third agers are slightly ahead, these groups are more active shoppers, either through having to buy for bigger numbers or just experience of buying across a wider range of food categories. It entices them to buy as they are more interested in buying in bulk.

Developing the USP as a standby

There is an socio-economic effect apparent in response rates to the top-ranking statements. In the lifestage results those in ABC1 Special Groups show a higher propensity to agree that frozen ready meals are better for keeping in stock or as a standby. The better-off may tend to buy across a wider portfolio of products on the basis of use and need, and purchase frozen ready meals simply as a freezer stock item as an emergency standby. They are far less likely to agree with other positive statements such as price or convenience.

This has quite interesting marketing implications. It would also indicate that the frozen ready meal manufacturers are misguided in trying to attract AB consumer with the promise of higher-quality ingredients, as the existing perceptions of upmarket consumers reject these associations with the frozen ready meals sector. The far-reaching implications of this strategy may reduce the sector’s dependency on excessive price promotions.

Larger households value convenience

While smaller households show a greater level of involvement in this market, it is larger households which show more agreement with many positive statements on frozen ready meals. As outlined above those shopping for bigger numbers are more aware of special offers. In addition the simplicity of cooking is important to some. Chilled ready meals must sometimes be reheated in stages with some items needing longer cooking times than others, whilst when cooking from frozen this is not an option as ‘one stage’ cooking is the standard.

Special offers

Considering the detrimental impact that excessive price promotions are having on the market, there is a relatively low awareness of special offers with just one in eight consumers making this association, probably as many consumers never actually reach the reach the frozen aisle to discover the deals on offer. There may also be a huge amount of chilled ready meals available on price promotion.

The market could probably bear a reduction in the amount sold on promotion; a shift away from multibuy special price deals and as an introduction to new products would instantly lift sales values in the market. Introducing more full price products under different labelling or brands would be a simple lead-in, as consumers would need to see the benefit in side-by-side comparisons with reduced price meals.

FROZEN VS CHILLED

Next Mintel went on to analyse the results for frozen set against an identical survey run concurrently for chilled ready meals. The two questions asked were:

“Which of these aspects do you feel applies more to chilled ready meals than frozen?”

“And secondly, which of these aspects do you feel apply more frozen ready meals than chilled?”

The two sets of results are compared and contrasted below to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of frozen ready meals in relation to the strengths and weaknesses of chilled. The value shown is the net difference between the two.

FIGURE 33: Strengths and weaknesses of frozen in relation to chilled ready meals, October-November 2005

Base: 1,032 adults aged 15+

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

Strengths

The ability to stock products at home to use later in the week or as a standby are the most valued aspects. In an age of one-stop shopping with small top-ups, and end-of-week shortcut is important for many households. In addition last-minute changes of plans leading to more staggered eating occasions also offer opportunities for frozen options.

Price for better or worse

Frozen ready meals are perceived as cheaper than fresh but this is not a positive indicator for the sector. The emphasis on price has led to a consumer expectation of cheap associations and implicitly cheaper ingredients for many respondents who regard chilled as by far the better choice.

The relative awareness of special offers compared to chilled is very small considering the persistent ongoing nature of such activity in frozen ready meals. Part of the problem is that consumers need to be at the freezer before they are informed of these promotions therefore it may be the case that suppliers and retailers are preaching to the converted, rather than bringing in new users.

Choice perceptions

It is interesting that, despite the relatively narrow portfolio of frozen ready meals compared to fresh, a small percentage actually perceive that the reverse is the case. This would seem to be an anomaly. However, it may be that the number of brands operating in the sector relative to the chilled fixture is adding to the image of a choice.

Weaknesses

Convenience

On all other criteria frozen ready meals are viewed at a disadvantage to chilled. The biggest difference is in the speed of cooking. Chilled ready meals do have a short preparation time, however, in the age of microwaves this is often a margin of a couple of minutes rather than longer, and so better on-pack labelling of cooking times could pay dividends for frozen suppliers. The ease of cooking in the microwave is also cited as a weakness of frozen options, although this may only be a matter of pressing buttons on the microwave. Also the belief that governs this is that it takes longer to prepare frozen food because some ready meals from the freezer have to be defrosted first. Also having to differently time components of chilled ready meals means that frozen options are sometimes easier.

Down-rated taste and quality in frozen

Despite the millions spent communicating the message that freezing is the most natural way to preserve food, frozen ready meals lose out in terms of health, nutrition, taste and quality of ingredients, authenticity and preservatives. Frozen ready meals suffer from a somewhat unjustified image problem: as consumers tend to perceive frozen ready meals as containing excessive salt, fat and sugar and additive levels, which consumers are avoiding as trends shift. On packaging, frozen ready meals also score below that for chilled, boasting bright boxes, which many consumers view as cheap and tacky. Frozen ready meals have failed to dovetail with the key trends of provenance, quality and organic, which could help to redress these negative perceptions.

Developing the SteamFresh/steamer proposition

The SteamFresh/steamer proposition needs to be developed much more to develop the market’s health credentials by aligning it more with frozen vegetables and distancing frozen ready meals from frozen chips, burgers, fish fingers, chips and pizza. Associations with such products make it harder for manufacturers to market frozen ready meals as healthy, as increasingly savvy consumers question the healthy tag more and more. Despite the various campaigns that inform consumers that freezing is the most natural way of preserving, this market will always struggle to remove customer apathy towards their goods in light of the competition from the chilled sector.

Organics offer opportunities

Frozen ready meals would benefit from moving exclusively to organic sourcing dovetailing with more British produce. In 2000, Iceland tried a 100% move into organic foods, particularly vegetables, but failed, as the market was not yet mature enough. However, the picture is different now: in 2005 sales were estimated at £1.18 billion; an increase of 94% since 2000 at current prices. However, overall growth trends in organic are still closely aligned to the success of the fruit and vegetable sectors as consumers appear slow, even reluctant, to widen their repertoires of organic foods from fresh to prepacked. Frozen ready meals are ripe for development under the organic banner benefiting from its ready association with health, whilst at the same time the move would prove beneficial for the organics market expanding consumers’ purchasing repertoires and helping to mainstream organic’s still rather esoteric market positioning.

COOKING AND EATING HABITS

Next Mintel went on to examine the purchasing of ready meals by cooking and eating habits. The actual question asked was:

“Which, if any of these statements describes your cooking and eating habits?’”

FIGURE 34: Cooking and eating habits, by type of ready meal purchased, October-November 2005

Base: 1,032 adults aged 15+

	Chilled ready meals purchasers**	Frozen ready meal purchasers***
	%	%
All	66	61
Nowadays I prefer foreign cuisine to traditional British dishes	75	67
I choose quick easy-to-prepare foods for weekday evening meals	78	69
Ready meals are convenient to use when I'm too tired to cook	83	77
I tend to eat dinner/lunch alone	58	57
I/we eat meals at the dinner table only for special occasions	69	66
Different members of my household eat dinner at different times	76	66
I bring lunch to work	71	66
Cooking from scratch is often as quick as preparing ready meals	60	55
Low-calorie ready meals are ideal if you're on a diet	74	71
When I can I spend more time cooking on the weekends	76	64
I always cook from scratch	53	48
I will spend more on products that save me time and effort*	82	75
I/we usually eat meals in front of the television	73	70
I am not confident cooking from scratch*	69	54
I rarely cook	65	57

* small sub-sample
** net of all consumers who purchase any chilled ready meal
*** net of all consumers who purchase any frozen ready meal

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

●              Three quarters of consumers in households with members that eat meals at different times have purchased a chilled ready meal in the past six months compared to two thirds who have purchased a frozen one. Anticipation of staggered eating times is likely to play a role in this behaviour. The limited fridge life of chilled products means that they are more likely to be bought for planned eating in the short term.

●              Some 54% of consumers who state that they are not confident cooking from scratch have purchased a frozen ready meal, compared to 69% who have purchased a chilled ready meal, highlighting that for some preparation of frozen is still seen as an extra burden. In addition respondents view chilled meals as more comparable to homemade than frozen. The texture and appearance of chilled foods is radically different from frozen and this can contribute to the ‘cooking’ experience and its authenticity.

●              Some 53% of consumers who claim to always cook from scratch purchase a ready meal which would seem to be a contradictory indicator. This ties in with the growth in ‘food fraudsters’; consumers who may choose to lie, passing off pre-prepared food as their own creation, or are simply unaware of what scratch cooking actually means. It may be that the definition of cooking has been so hugely altered in the past couple of years that many consumers really do not know the definition of scratch cooking anymore.

●              Those who agree that cooking from scratch is as easy as purchasing ready meals are more likely to opt for chilled products.

●              There is little difference in purchasing of chilled or frozen for those who tend to eat alone. These consumers may be buying across a portfolio of options which easily encompasses both formats.

READY MEALS AND THE EVENING MEAL

Next Mintel went on to analyse the length of time consumers spend preparing their evening meal at home. The actual question asked was:

“During the week, how long on average is spent preparing or cooking your evening meal?”

FIGURE 35: Time spent preparing or cooking the evening meal, October-November 2005

Base: 983 adults aged 15+ who do not have their main meal at lunchtimes

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

Over half of respondents generally spend at least half an hour preparing their evening meal. This will include the majority of those cooking from raw ingredients, although with pre-cut ready-to-cook meats and vegetables it is possible to prepare a meal from scratch in much less time. Only a small proportion allocate on average less than 15 minutes and this sector is likely to be dominated by those choosing more prepared foods such as ready meals. However, it does indicate that time-saving shortcuts are not the be-all and end-all and that there is a role for frozen ready meals prepared in 31-45 minutes if they offer preparation skills and offer something that typically cannot be prepared from scratch.

FIGURE 36: Time spent preparing or cooking the evening meal, by ready meal purchased, October-November 2005

Base: 1,032 adults aged 15+

	Any chilled ready meal**	Any frozen ready meal***
	%	%
All	66	61
0-15 minutes*	72	74
16-30 minutes	69	61
31-45 minutes	67	64
46 minutes-1 hour	64	53
More than one hour*	57	47

* small sub-sample
** net of all consumers who purchase any chilled ready meal
*** net of all consumers who purchase any frozen ready meal

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

Time is an issue

There is a general link between usage of ready meals and smaller amounts of time spent in meal preparation and cooking. Those spending the least time in this task, up to 15 minutes a weekday, are slightly more likely to buy frozen ready meals but with this exception chilled recipes perform more strongly across all times. This may be attributable to a portfolio approach towards cooking taken by those who do not choose to spend time cooking. Instead they choose from among a range of prepared options and this includes frozen ready meals as a convenient option.

There is a considerable overlap between those buying both chilled and frozen. However, the motivation for buying each is likely to vary. While chilled ready meals continue to move upmarket with the premium top-tier ranges, frozen may be better off surrendering this ground to them. The perception gulf between chilled and frozen is wide, but the latter has established a strong position as a storecupboard standby.

Ready meals and the evening meal

Next Mintel went onto analyse attitudes towards the evening meal and ready meals.

“Thinking about the evening meal, which, if any attitudes apply to you?”

FIGURE 37: Attitudes towards ready meals purchased, by attitudes towards ready meals, October-November 2005

Base: 1,032 adults aged 15+	Chilled ready meal**	Frozen ready meal***
	%	%
All	66	61
I try to eat my main meal around the same time every evening	63	58
I don't have a regular time for my evening meal	73	67
I buy food for the week's evening meals as part of the weekly shop	65	60
I buy food for the evening meal on a day-to-day basis*	57	54
I enjoy planning evening meals	60	52
I find it difficult to think about what to prepare for evening meals	70	65
My evening meal tends to shift around my working/social life	72	65

* small sub-sample
** net of all consumers who purchase any chilled ready meal
*** net of all consumers who purchase any frozen ready meal

SOURCE: BMRB/Mintel

Generally there is only a slight gap in agreement between those opting for chilled or frozen ready meals, while the overall trends in terms of highest to lowest levels of agreement are the same between buyers of both products. Ultimately the difference between the two is not occasion-based and other factors are obviously key determinants, eg packaging, price promotion.