By Sachin Murdeshwar

Mumbai  : Velocity MR, a leading market research and analysis company announced the results of their pan India study to understand the growing popularity of Heat-and-Eat / RTE (Ready to Eat) food products in India. The national study was conducted among a sample size of 2000 respondents and covered prominent Indian metros including Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Pune.

 

The study covered multiple demographics and observed that RTE consumption was highest among the employed consumers and in the age group of 26-45. The study also observed that the RTE consumption is higher among the female respondents in these metros, as compared to the male respondents. Most respondents confirmed that they preferred consuming RTEs in the form of snacks and the preference for vegetarian RTE foods was higher that the non-vegetarian RTE’s. While most respondents claimed that they like to consume RTE as and when required, the average consumption rate of RTE’s was observed to be fortnightly. Brands like Maggi, Knorr, Amul, Chings and MTR topped the list of most preferred RTE brands.

 

Jasal Shah, Managing Director & CEO of Velocity MR, shared, “It is no surprise that the Ready-to-Eat market has been witnessing a steady growth in recent years. While consumers generally tend to prioritize healthy, home cooked meals over the convenience, counter food products; a large section of Indian consumers prefer Ready-to-Eat products, owing to their busy schedules and hectic lifestyle. Through our study, we have seen that the top 3 contributing factors to the growth of the RTE segment is time-saving (72%), good taste (62%) and convenient cooking (60%). These factors and the growing working women population, also justify the higher number of women respondents preferring RTE, when compared to their male counterparts. This can also be seen as one of the driving forces behind most of the “health-food” category players venturing into the Ready-to-eat segment.”

 

He further adds, “While we could clearly demarcate the most preferred RTE brands like Maggi, Knorr, Amul, MTR and Chings, from their industry counterparts; we were also interestingly able to identify some of the regional local favorites like Delight foods in Mumbai and Pune, Al Fez in Kolkata, Mother’s Recipe and Real Thai in Bengaluru, etc.”

 

Highlights of the Study

 

• 1 in every 3 consumers have consumed some form of Heat & Eat / RTE product in the past week
• Females consume RTE more than males in metros
• Snacks and Soups form the key consumed Heat & Eat / RTE products in both Veg and Non-Veg segments
• French fries, the most consumed snack is had by less than 70% of the consumers
• Chicken Nuggets, the most preferred non-veg snack is consumed by about 50% of the consumers
• Time saving and convenience of cooking are the two most sought-after benefits from RTE segment. Over 50% consumers also prefer it for the variety of items offered
• Maggi, Knorr, Amul, MTR and Chings are the most preferred brands in both Veg and Non-veg segments at an overall level, even though their penetration varies in different cities
• Some local flavors are also popular like:

o   Delight Foods & MOM- Meal of the moment in Mumbai

o   AL Fez in Kolkata

o   Delight foods, Batchelors, Betty Corner in Pune

o   Mother’s Recipe and Real Thai in Bangalore