The frozen food market has witnessed significant growth over the past few years owing to the growing demand for convenience foods. Frozen foods offer benefits such as long shelf-life, convenience of use and consistency of taste. Moreover, the process of freezing foods retains maximum nutrition, freshness and flavor. Key products in the frozen food market include frozen ready meals, meat and poultry, seafood, fruits and vegetables. The emergence of private label brands with diverse product offerings has also fuelled the demand for frozen foods.

The Global frozen food market is estimated to be valued at US$167116.37 Mn in 2024 and is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 4.8% over the forecast period 2023 to 2030. Growing urbanization and busier lifestyles have increased the demand for packaged, easy-to-cook foods. This has boosted the sales of frozen foods as they provide convenience without compromising on taste or nutrition. Moreover, rising disposable incomes in developing economies has allowed consumers to spend more on premium frozen food products.

Key Takeaways

Key players: Key players operating in the frozen food market are Nestle S.A., Ajinomoto Co., Inc., Kraft Foods Group, Inc., ConAgra Foods, Inc., General Mills, Inc., H.J. Heinz Company, Tyson Foods, Inc., Unilever Plc., Maple Leaf Foods, Inc., and Pinnacle Foods, Inc. These players are focusing on new product launches catering to evolving tastes and preferences. For instance, Nestle S.A launched a range of frozen dumplings and bao in 2021.
Growing demand: The global frozen food market is expected expand significantly owing to changing lifestyles, rising number of working women and emergence of nuclear families which boost the demand for convenience foods. Furthermore, increasing health awareness is leading to demand for frozen organic foods and foods with functional benefits.
Global expansion: Major frozen food manufacturers are expanding their footprint globally through acquisitions and partnerships. For instance, Tyson Foods acquired Kentucky-based Keystone Foods in 2018 to strengthen its frozen and refrigerated value-added food business globally. Moreover, private labels brands are also expanding across regions which further intensifies the competition.

Market Key Trends

One of the major trends in the frozen food market is increasing demand for plant-based and vegetarian frozen meals and snacks. With growing health and environment consciousness, consumers are shifting towards more healthier and sustainable diets. Plant-based frozen food options provide similar taste and texture to their meat counterpart. Moreover, advancements in plant-protein technology have enabled manufacturers to imitate meat texture and flavors very closely. This is positively impacting the sale of frozen plant-based meat substitutes.

Porter’s Analysis

Threat of new entrants: Frozen food requires huge infrastructures and capital investment, limiting the threat of new entrants. Bargaining power of buyers: Buyers have moderate bargaining power due to availability of substitutes. Bargaining power of suppliers: Suppliers have moderate bargaining power due to availability of alternatives. Threat of new substitutes: Substitutes like fresh and canned food pose moderate threat. Competitive rivalry: Intense competition from existing players.

Frozen food market value is highly concentrated in North America and Europe. North America accounts for the largest market share owing to increasing trend of consuming ready-to-eat food amongst consumers. Europe follows North America in terms of frozen food market value share majorly driven by developed economies like Germany, UK and France.

The Asia Pacific region is growing at the fastest rate for frozen food market primarily due to changing food consumption habits and rising disposable income in emerging economies like China and India. The demand for frozen foods is expected to increase substantially in Asia Pacific supported by growing middle class population, rapid urbanization and busy lifestyles.