The trend towards veganism and the progression in plant-based ready meals innovation in Europe continues to gather pace, alongside the growing movement towards more ethical and sustainable lifestyles. Consumers are increasingly demanding clean label products as they search for trust and transparency. Sustainability and ethics are becoming pillars of trust under the clean label umbrella. This means that clean label status extends throughout the supply chain and many eating occasions. Ultimately, consumers want food that tastes good and is also good for the planet, according to Kerry.

       Speaking to FoodIngredientsFirst, Christina Furlong, Insights Specialist, Market Research and Consumer Connect, Kerry Europe & Russia notes: “The rise in third-party delivery services has greatly expanded the consumer repertoire. Home delivery offers convenience, freshness and flexibility. Ready meals and delivery are operating in a similar space. As home deliveries become increasingly sophisticated, ready meals must continue to innovate to stay relevant.”

       Customization will be an area that ready meals can win in, according to Noreen Sheehan, Savory End-Use Market Director, Kerry Europe & Russia. “Mealtimes are becoming increasingly fragmented, stretching from the traditional three meals a day to five or six. Ready meals manufacturers need to innovate in this space to accommodate consumer needs throughout the day and not just target lunch or dinner,” she says.

       Successful innovation is creating a product that addresses an unmet consumer need, really radical innovation can change consumer behaviors. Meal kits such as Hello Fresh or Blue Apron have been successful in doing this. They have essentially created a new market for “speed-scratch,” notes Furlong. “This has changed the shopping, cooking and eating experience – and experience is significant for today’s consumer. Part of the appeal of meal kits is the experience. It allows people to reconnect with the joy of cooking,” she explains.

       Additionally, a growing awareness of health means a higher demand for healthy ready meals. Reducing fat, salt and calories will remain important for the ready meals sector. “The challenge is maintaining integrity and freshness while offering great taste and shelf-stability,” Sheehan continues. “Whenever you take something out such as fat, salt or meat, you have to replac not just the functionality of those ingredients but the flavor and texture. Plant-based is a real challenge because of the added complexity and cost of delivering great authentic taste and texture to plant proteins and maintaining a clean label,” she notes.

       “Increasingly, there is an attitudinal shift to more positive nutrition, which is putting beneficial ingredients in, rather than simply focusing on taking the negatives out. Digestive health will also remain a big theme in 2019. It may evolve to include more fiber claims as well as soft claims of calming or relaxing ingredients.”

       Plant-based is a very compelling theme; a broad range of people are eating plant-based diets from vegans, vegetarians, flexitarians and meat-reducers. There is also a secondary market of consumers who don’t follow any specific diet but are curious to try new dishes in the ready meal category, Sheehan says.

       Ready meals continue to be a competitive and agile space, notes Furlong. “You can walk down any supermarket aisle and look at the number of great branded and private label offerings available and see how much it has changed in the past five years. There is a lot of competition on price, convenience, taste and healthy offerings.”

       Ready meals are a very price-driven category and this is wher private label is gaining market share. In the past, private label was considered to be lower quality and lacked unique offerings. “Now premium tier private label is creating lots of great innovative meal solutions and competing directly with branded. Many smaller brands have an edge in healthy offerings and a trust halo that larger brands struggle to achieve. And when it comes to unique offerings, there is always a race to launch the next big flavor or a new exciting ingredient. Given the backlash against plastic, packaging is also a competitive space and can provide a competitive edge. Ready meals is a melting pot of competition,” she stresses.

       Changing regulations in the fight against obesity are having an impact on the industry too. Public Health England (PHE) in the UK is targeting 20 percent kcal reduction across savory products by 2022. Germany and Spain, meanwhile, recently signed up to Nutriscore, a new front-of-pack labeling system. “The result of this is increasing scrutiny on ready meals,” Sheehan adds.

       Furlong also notes that natural solutions to extend shelf-life, in the battle against food waste, will become increasingly important. “There is a correlation between food waste, shelf-life and packaging making this a complex task,” she adds.

       Changing consumer demands create complexity for the developers of prepared meals who need to develop great taste, within the reality of mass production. “It is possible to deliver great tasting meals that are as close to their natural state as possible, with simple ingredients, better nutrition and trusted cooking methods,” Sheehan concludes.

       The World of Food Ingredients recently reported on Kerry’s 2019 Consumer Trends, wher the notion of tapping into green demand presented innovation opportunities.