The global food coatings ingredient market is estimated to grow from USD 2.8 billion in 2017 to USD 3.8 billion by 2022, while innovation in global frozen coated foods largely remains the main factor for driving the segment forward.
By Dan Orehov
Various new introduction on the European market, which have been noticed in recent years, include a large palette of tastes, shapes and textures that appeal to lovers of the global food culture, the culinary aficionados cu don’t have the time to cook from scratch, but at the same time are looking for a brand new experience. One such example is Trident Seafoods range of Alaskan Cod – which comes in the typically Asian Panko breading style, recommended to be served with tartar sauce or malt vinegar, in a taco with corn or black bean salsa. The range also includes a multi-grain variety, as well as a beer-battered specialty. Moving from Asia to a more Latin oriented flavor, the Spanish producer Eurofrits includes in their range of products the Hake& Shrimp Pops, a spiced-up frozen hake and shrimp product for retail and foodservice, in a tapas-style, typically Spanish flavored finger food.
According to analyst Jonathan Thomas, in markets such as the UK, coated meat and poultry products (i.e. battered and breaded varieties) are popular buffet and party foods with many age groups, despite their traditional links with children and younger consumers. Products such as chicken sticks, chicken goujons and chicken pops benefit from being easy, quick and convenient to cook, as well as ideally-suited to the finger foods market. In recent years, manufacturers have made strenuous efforts to improve the provenance of the meat used to improve the perceived quality of their products, as well as experimenting with more novel flavors of coatings. “Much of the recent new product activity within the market has featured southern-style coatings. As an example, Moy Park launched a new range of frozen breaded chicken products in June 2016, under the O’Kane label. This included varieties such as southern-fried chicken wings and strips, as well as chicken nuggets, pops and dippers. Earlier in the year, the same company had extended its portfolio with new chilled breaded chicken products featuring a choice of fillings, such as Piri-Piri and Garlic & Herb sauces. Moy Park, which is owned by multinational meat giant JBS, aims to increase the size of its convenience products business, which at present accounts for just 7% of overall turnover,” he concludes.
The full version of this article is available in the July-August print issue of Frozen Food Europe
