The frozen food retail sector in the United Kingdom has rung up a monumental £6 billion in sales for the first time ever, with value growing at 5.4% a year and growth registered across a number of categories, compared to a market that was experiencing a 0.6% decline this time last year.
The latest statistics provided by Kantar Worldpanel show that growth throughout the industry has accelerated periodically since January 2017 due to an increase in premium product presence across a range of categories, as well as more regular purchases as consumers are heading to frozen food aisles more frequently to incorporate frozen products as part of their daily diet.
The frozen confectionery and frozen fish categories are out-performing the sector considerably in growth, with frozen confectionery holding a 21.5% market share, an increase of 7.7%, while fish takes 13.6%, up 6.9%. These figures have risen consistently in the past three quarters due to a focus innovation across both categories as frozen food manufacturers continue to lead with development and a focus on premium, on-trend products that can be easily prepared at home.
John Hyman, chief executive of the British Frozen Food Federation, commented: “Hitting the £6 billion mark is a huge milestone for the frozen food industry and is a demonstration of the talent and innovation that exists in the sector. A lot of work has been done in communicating the benefits of frozen food to consumers, with focused and innovative marketing campaigns from brands and retailers contributing significantly to the change in consumer perceptions that we’ve seen in recent years.
“Consumers are much more tuned-in to the benefits of frozen food including waste reduction, convenience and health and are discovering the breadth of choice in high-quality, on-trend products that are available to them with little preparation at home. As the number of Brits eating out of home declines, consumers are heading for the premium products on offer in the frozen aisles and this has contributed to this value milestone.”
