Further confirmation that today's hectic, time-pressured, consumer has even less time to prepare a meal and actually sit down to eat it comes in the form of a new publication from the UK's Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD).
According to the IGD report, 'Food Consumption 2002', an increase in the number and variety of places where food is available, together with a more impulsive and impatient consumer, is driving a move towards more informal dining and a decline in the traditional fixed meal times.
Figures to support the findings show that there has been a 9 per cent increase in the number of snacking occasions and a 26 per cent increase in the number of occasions when light meals are consumed.
An increase in single person households (in 2001 almost one third of the population lived alone), together with more individual demands at meal times, has led to a 16 per cent increase in the number of one person meal occasions since 1994.
The IGD report stresses that the trend away from the dining table and towards the TV is still on the up, making it increasingly the norm to eat one's dinner while staring at two dimensional images rather than actually sitting at the table and holding a discussion with the three dimensional kind.
New products entering the market place reflect the changing concept of mealtimes with food companies quick to respond to the needs of the consumer. Convenience, according to the IGD report, is a key driver for food choice and recent trends suggest that the demand for convenience food is likely to continue increasing as young consumers take their habits with them into old age. IGD research has found that in the future, younger consumers (aged 30-39) will probably not suddenly discover a desire to cook from scratch when they reach 60.
Convenience foods are increasingly based around 'meal solutions', an industry buzzword that the IGD describes as "the aim to make customers' lives easier when choosing and preparing meals". These foods, according to the IGD, aspire towards simplifiying the mealtime for consumers who lack the knowledge, time, ideas, skills and motivation to prepare the evening meal from raw ingredients and therefore seek out options to make their lives easier.
Importantly, adds the IGD, convenience foods aim to inspire consumers with new ideas for meal times, taking the routine out of the evening meal. For example, pre-packed meat is increasingly accompanied by stir-fry sauces, and fruit and vegetables are washed, chopped and often combined with extra seasoning to make them more exciting to the consumer.
Joanne Denney, chief executive of the IGD, said: "IGD research has found that consumers want more than just convenience, they also want help and inspiration in choosing what to eat in terms of menus and not just products. Although 49 per cent of UK consumers eat pre-prepared meals at least once a week, traditional cooking and eating patterns are by no means redundant. The challenge for the food industry is to present food in such a way that it meets the needs and aspirations of as wide a group of consumers as possible."
"Ultimately, the switch in demand from basic cuts of meat and fresh produce to more added value products is good news for food producers, helping to reinvigorate the category and drive consumption of their products, whether it's as an ingredient in a mixed salad or semi-prepared ready meal, or the core component of an exotic vegetable side dish or a full-blown gourmet restaurant experience," she added.