About this reportThe market for convenience food products continues to grow, and in 2005, stood at a total market value of €11,405m, up 23% over 1999.
A high percentage of women with demanding jobs and careers, the ongoing trend towards small, childless households, coupled with a widespread reluctance to spend too much time on cooking has increased demand for time-saving food products.
At the same time, consumers expect high standard, fresh and healthy products.
Suppliers oblige by improving the quality, or at least the image, of their lines; and there is some evidence that consumers are now trading up again.However, even without that, the market has been growing rapidly in value terms, so nearly all segments under review in this report have done well, with the small cooking sauces subsegment showing the highest growth rate.
Chilled ready meals are also still booming.