Achieving convenience in meals
Located between home-cooking and eating out, the convenience food segment caters to consumers with diversified meal solutions outside of the restaurant industry. Sold in a frozen, dried, preserved, or ready-to-eat state, convenience foods are a part of the food processing industry that has been making use of developments in food technology to optimize consumption and recreate the taste of homemade food. Taking the aspect of convenience to the highest level, food manufacturers have been focusing on developing products and packaging that require minimal effort in preparation, consumption, and cleaning up.Like other food-related segments, the sector is dominated by domestic brands that are benefiting from their reputations among consumers and their locality, which allows them to respond quickly to changing consumer needs. But despite the favorable positions of domestic businesses, the market is highly fragmented without a definite leader. Food processors enter the market with product lines ranging from single-servings of snack foods to full-course meals. In contrast, the sales channels to the end consumer paint a more transparent picture in favor of convenience stores. The assortments of the small corner shops are restricted by the limited sales floor and storage spaces. However, the vast store network coupled with quick services paved the way for convenience stores to become the major sales channel for ready-to-eat meals.
Challenges and opportunities of convenience
The success of the convenience food segment is reliant on social changes, fluctuating consumer demands, and the ability of manufacturers to adapt to changing trends. Demographic changes in Japan have been benefitting the segment's growth through an increase in the number of single households and nuclear family structures in which large meals with a variety of dishes are becoming less common. In addition, the growth of the female workforce is inevitably met by a decline in full-time homemakers and the prevalence of a busy lifestyle in which quick and affordable meals are a welcomed alternative to homemade food and food services.But the market's growth is not unrestricted, with the negative reputation of prepared foods impacting consumer behavior. Highly processed and packaged products are commonly associated with a low nutritional and high salt, fat, and sugar content. Even though the processed food market was forecast to resume an upward trend, convenience food brands are challenged by the interest in healthy food trends like the emerging natural and organic food segments.
