In this interview with Cargill representatives, we wanted to find out what the most frequently used ingredients are for the category, as well as some of the dominant trends in the industry.
- How would you characterize the current ingredients market for frozen food products?
The frozen food market in Western Europe continues to show stability with growth in the eastern European markets of around 3%. UK, Germany, France and Sweden are the biggest markets in Europe with ‘ready to heat’ convenience being a clear driver for busy consumers. This offers ingredients that demonstrate storage and frozen stability a real opportunity to offer functionality in these types of products. What we are also seeing in relation to ingredients in ready meals, is the rise of natural, no additives, organic and GMO free claims labeling.
- What are some of the dominant trends in ingredients for frozen foods?
Key trends right now in frozen meals include Convenience, Ethical and Health.
- Convenience is all about offering consumers simple ‘easy to prepare’, ‘food on the go’ solutions that satisfy our busy lifestyles
- Ethical includes sourcing local and sustainable ingredients / meal components that make consumer choice in this category more differentiated
- Health includes reducing fat and salt and formulating with more label friendly ingredients that consumers understand.
You can read the full version of this interview in the next print issue of Frozen Food Europe
