Sales of frozen foods in Germany will grow by 1.5% in 2019, a new report from the German Frozen Food Institute (dti) has revealed. The annual per capita consumption of frozen products could thus increase by 0.7kg from the previous 46.3kg (2018) to around 47kg (2019).
According to dti calculations, the volume of frozen foodstuffs will rise to 3.83m tons in 2019 (from 3.77m tons in 2018). The figures include frozen food products for home and foodservice markets.
In terms of sales of frozen products in Germany, dti expects growth of 3.5% to EUR15.3bn in 2019 (EUR14.7bn in 2018). At the same time, manufacturers report being concerned about rising commodity prices and logistics costs due to crop failure and driver shortages.
Frozen food products have a higher consumer reach and are used in almost every household. 68% of households are frequent users and buy frozen foods several times a month. These purchases are, to a large extent, planned.
In the consumer market, growth is supported by established brands, as they provide competitive pressure on private labels through their discount listings. New product concepts and new players also play a role in market development.
In the first half of 2019, frozen potato products, ready meals, and frozen pizza were the categories that recorded the largest increase. Frozen fish, meat, as well as frozen fruit and frozen snacks lagged behind the expectations in food retailing.
Frozen Food Trends in 2019: Organic
dti closely monitors the development of the trends in the frozen food range and survey its member companies about them. The most important trend is by far the desire to save time and money on shopping and cooking.
People are increasingly looking for nutritious and simple solutions for their daily diet, and so their demand for healthy and sustainable food continues to increase.
Compared to the previous year, the dti trend survey shows that organic and regional continue to be strong trends when it comes to frozen foods. Vegetarian, vegan frozen foods and the trend towards reduced sugar, salt and fat remain stable. On the other hand, dti found that the trends for premium products, snacks, and free-from products are somewhat in the downturn.
Consumer Demands
In discussions with customers, sustainability was found to be an important factor when it comes to deciding which frozen foods to purchase. 75% of dti’s members confirm this is indeed the case. The design for carbon neutrality of the products (20%), the use of recyclable packaging material (25%) and the animal welfare label are currently the most important concerns.
Frozen food Products Are Indispensable
The foodservice market continued to develop positively in 2019. According to calculations by the NPD Group Deutschland GmbH, based on the consumer panel CREST, a general growth of more than 1% in the number of customers is expected in 2019.
In the first quarter of 2019, the number of diners has, so far, increased by 1% and the average bonus by 3%. Gastronomy development is always closely related to the overall economic mood. A murky period can, therefore, not be ruled out at the end of the year.
The individual areas of gastronomy are developing differently: the best performers are full-service restaurants with a specialization in vegetarian, job catering and the takeaway sector. Frozen food products have also a wide range of uses in every catering sector and are valued by chefs by their main advantages (freshness, durability, natural qualities, portionability) and flexibility, allowing them to profit from the positive market development.
