Which factors promote the sales of ready-made meals, and which ones hinder them? Are there any other factors besides the well-known ones such as Asian ingredients, seasonings or reduced meat content?
What role do the increasing aging of many societies, the growing influx into large cities or the economic shift from old to new sectors, play? Let’s take a subjective look ahead. By Dieter Mailänder, Redaktionsbüro Dieter Mailänder
We’ve all been there. You’ve come home exhausted, just want to put your feet up and enjoy something quick to prepare—the perfect scenario for an appealing ready-made meal: heat up a pan or preheat an oven, a microwave, or perhaps an air fryer, put in the ready-made meal, wait some minutes, and you’re good to go.
This need to prepare a tasty meal quickly and easily can be found all across Europe, particularly in urban centers with their vibrant lifestyles and diverse working conditions. This development has led to Europe becoming the world’s largest regional market for ready-made meals last year with the value of around USD64bn. It is interesting to note how sales are distributed – half of them are concentrated in three countries: the United Kingdom, France, and Germany. Around one-third of the population of the European Union and the United Kingdom lives in this trio of countries. The main drivers of this development are often retail companies with their own brands.
Overriding Developments – High Relevance
What drives the sales of ready-made meals, whether frozen, chilled, or preserved, but what can also weaken them? Some of these developments are highly controversial, while others are merely subject to various assessments. However, there is broad agreement on the following causes:
• In almost all European countries, people are getting older and older. The median value that divides the age scale of a population into two exactly equal halves, has been rising steadily since 1950 almost everywhere but has flattened out in recent years. Regardless of that, the legal age limits at which people can retire remained largely unchanged in most countries; only a few have an automatic mechanism whereby retirement is linked to life expectancy and changes in line with this. One example of this is Sweden, where this procedure is widely accepted. It should be noted that the actual retirement age is often significantly lower than the statutory retirement age, for example, due to early retirement.
• Not only in Asia or Central and South America, but also in Europe, the proportion of the population living in urban centers has been growing since 1950 at the expense of the rural population. However, it has remained relatively stable for the past ten years.
• Many European countries are being forced to undergo massive transformations due to the current geo-political and geo-economic constellation of the US, China, and Russia. Traditional industry branches must open up new lines of business; otherwise, they lose their business foundation. Thousands of jobs are being lost in these sectors. Those that arise in dynamic, innovative, future-orientated lines of business will only be able to substantially compensate for these losses in the distant future. The result: societies are becoming more divided. One part of them enjoys relatively secure, good to very good incomes. The other part only achieves low, often fluctuating, and in some cases even precarious incomes, which are often generated from multiple jobs.
• Time restraints, which boost the sales of ready-made meals, are caused not only by workloads but also by so-called leisure stress. People like to pack their free time with so many activities that they are just as exhausted in the evening as they are when they finish work.
This flash review shows that in the near future, overriding developments will influence the sales of ready-made meals in Europe, which may not always be captured by traditional market research. They overshadow the much-discussed product-related influencing factors, which will remain relevant. These currently include Asian ingredients and seasonings, high protein content, regionally produced components, meat-free recipes, the replacement of additives that are perceived as critical, environmentally friendly packaging, a lower carbon footprint along the supply chain, and more.
To read the entire article, please access your complimentary e-copy of Frozen Food Europe March-April, 2026 issue here.