It wasn’t only football fans who were disappointed at England’s early exit from football’s World Cup, but retailers had been counting on extra sales from families watching TV at home and buying frozen ready-meals to eat whilst sitting on the sofa. They experienced an unwelcome drop in sales when England made an early exit from the tournament.
However, with autumn coming up, stores are hoping for improved sales, and producers are keen to help. Take London’s King’s Road, for example: with a mix of shoppers, from rich families to singletons, they possess a substantial disposable income, so shops such as Waitrose and Patridges always have something innovative or exciting in stock. Patridges are one of the grocers that supplies H. M. The Queen, and were one of the first in the area to stock President’s Breaded Camembert Cheeses.
They have freezers stocked with ready-meals, made by small producers, and also some high-end products from France, such as the recent one from the French butter and cheese supplier, President. I am referring to President breaded camembert cheese 200g, which is ideal as a ‘fast food’ for a singleton’s supper, or a first course at a smart dinner party, or for canapés. Costing GBP2.85 a packet, it is ready in 6 minutes, and not only has the mini-camemberts but also Cranberry Sauce for serving. As they say, “ideal for starters, snacks or as part of a main course”, or even a complete main course for vegetarians. As one customer says, “my wife is vegetarian and always keeps a pack or two of President breaded cheeses in the fridge.
Fish is tops
Once Fish and Chips were a staple of the British diet, and are still one of the most popular meals for British families. But where previously the fish was Cod (for the masses) or Halibut for the upper crust, now the search is on for sustainable varieties. With worries over dwindling fish stocks, the government has involved celebrity Chefs to popularize Pollock, saying this is for health-conscious shoppers because customers are told repeatedly by medical profession that fish is good for you and, most importantly for sales, generally fish has fewer calories than meat.
Pollock is a ‘new’ fish on offer in the frozen ranges. Amongst fishermen Pollock, once known as Coley, was what you took home for the cat. But traveling “leisure class” on Eurostar to Brussels, I opened my menu to see the featured fish was Pollock, and was assured by the Steward that it was now a staple on the menu. TV Chefs are paid to promote this fish, so it is now fully accepted by the general public and some is even imported from Alaska.
Carrying on with the sustainable theme, in the local Waitrose freezer cabinet there is a special line flashed ‘Line Caught Haddock’, and other supermarkets offer their own ‘line caught fish’ brands as well, in breaded and coated versions – the most popular way to serve fish.
Various fishing ministries are aiming to encourage consumers to cease demanding Cod (which is fast disappearing from traditional fishing grounds in the North Sea), and go for species such as Pollock. Interestingly, Italians do not consume so much frozen food as other countries, but even their consumption of coated fish has increased – albeit very slowly. However,
Haddock is selling well: once it was seen as an expensive species, along with sole, but now new fish stocks have been discovered, and with the high overall price of fish, it is becoming popular with more customers. Birds Eye supplies freezer packs of four portions of Breaded Haddock, in their popular range.
One reason why customers like breaded products is that they are less likely to give off a ‘fishy’ smell whilst being cooked, which is what many customers dislike.
Fish cakes
Less cooking smell could be one reason why fish cakes are soaring to the top of the popularity polls. Another is that they always have a mouth-pleasing crunchy coating, and they are suddenly very smart to eat. Trendy restaurants in Britain now offer their own fish cakes to diners – who choose them as a means of going back to the food of their childhood – or what is termed ‘comfort food’.
For Britain’s children, Fish Fingers are so popular that they are even a staple of children’s menus in family-friendly restaurants. Now, mothers are starting to become very keen on measures to save the planet, so to reassure them, Birds Eye’s cod and haddock Fish Fingers have been given the MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) stamp of approval. They reckon this move will help 3.4 million British households to eat more fish from certified sustainable sources. Birds Eye is proud that its entire Cod and Haddock Fish Finger range has achieved MSC certification.
The move has switched 5,200 tonnes of fish products to sustainable and certified produce in the UK market, and increased the total weight of MSC labeled products sold by 20%, which is not inconsiderable: the UK consumes over 185 million Birds Eye Cod and Haddock Fish Fingers each year.
The switch to more MSC certified supplies forms part of Iglo Group’s company-wide sustainability plan, Forever Food, which aims to certify 100% of its fish range to help protect global fish stocks, and keep in with the Eco-warriors lobby across Europe. As the UK is No. 2 in the world’s consumption of cod, this is a major development. Obviously, it is hoped that other producers of coated fish products will follow suit.
Wrapped foods
These generally have a meat or vegetarian content, and are particularly popular at fast food outlets, such as garage forecourts, as they provide food-on-the-go that is easy to carry. But this summer there have been even larger sales from Music Festivals. These are serious outlets, usually open over 3 – 5 days, with over 100,000 visitors camping on the official sites; a huge captive, hungry audience.
Others who have taken to Wrapped foods are known as ‘dashboard diners’ e.g. commuters, truckers, holidaymakers, all stopping in at shops at petrol stations. Moreover, wrapped foods are particularly popular with the ever-expanding ethnic market in Britain. It is easy for small outlets to mix up and sell different fillings, to satisfy differing tastes. Now most of the major supermarkets have a large section offering different wrapped products in their cabinets, situated near the entrances – easy to rush in at lunch-time and grab something to eat quickly.
Coated Chicken Products
Recently the ever-popular Chicken Nuggets have had a very bad press. Ever since TV Chef Jamie Oliver loudly condemned chicken nuggets on school menus, and demonstrated (graphically) how they might be made, they have had a bad press. But this bad publicity acted as a wake-up call for the industry, and today the way the nuggets are made has improved dramatically. Even McDonalds has been forced to issue a video, showing the inside of one of their factories, highlighting the process of making their chicken nuggets.
Another producer, Westbridge, makes coated and fried chicken pieces with whole chicken breast, marinated, fully cooked and then individually quick frozen. One plus is that the range is primarily whole muscle products.
For the huge numbers of British Curry fans, Tesco has come up with Breaded Curry Chicken Bites – 310 gms selling at GBP2. These are chopped and shaped chicken, filled with a curry sauce in a crispy breadcrumb coating, and bound to please all the lovers of this hot spicy and specialized food.
Consumers who are concerned at the high fat content in coatings, breadcrumbs etc. are being catered for with ‘lighter’ coatings, such as lemon, pre-grilled foods etc. And those on a gluten-free diet can choose Tesco Breaded Pollock sticks, at GBP2 for 270g. Probably not such as healthy an option, but Tesco also supply Tesco Free from 2 Mature Cheddar & Onion Crisp Bakes, 270G for GBP1.75
For the future
Demand for coated foods across the western parts of Europe remains reasonably high, with sales having been aided by the growing popularity of affordable meal options during the economic downturn. The coated foods category continues to witness new product activity, much of which has focused upon the development of more novel coatings (with many manufacturers now experimenting with healthier or flavored varieties), as well as use of better quality and sustainably-sourced meat and seafood.
According to The Resurgence of Frozen Foods – New Market Report from Leatherhead, although penetration levels for frozen foods remains high across Western Europe, market growth has been rather limited in parts of the region over the last decade. Much of this has been due to the strong competition the sector faces from chilled prepared foods, which have increasingly been perceived as offering superior taste and quality levels compared with their frozen equivalents. As a result, manufacturers of frozen foods have been forced to improve their offerings in order to attract consumers back to the category.
Recent evidence suggests that most have been successful, since growth has returned to the frozen foods market in countries such as the UK. The frozen foods market has also benefited from the economic recession and its effect on consumer spending, since increasingly price-conscious consumers are coming to appreciate the value for money frozen foods offer. However, consumer research carried out by Leatherhead Food Research in the UK indicates that quality and choice is still believed to be much higher for chilled foods, compared with frozen but demand for some varieties of coated foods has increased in the wake of the horsemeat scandal.
Incidentally, Leatherhead said coated foods have performed better than many other types of food during the economic recession, due to trends such as the preference for lower-cost meal centers and the growth of in-home dining and entertaining. However, the sector is thought to have been aided further in parts of the EU region following the horsemeat scandal which engulfed Europe at the start of 2013.
And as breaded or coated foods are often fish or chicken, this aspect must help sales. Sadly, the horsemeat scandal badly dented the public’s confidence in the provenance of food, and they are still not trusting suppliers 100%.