Just five-odd years ago, unexpected guests at home meant whipping up a batch of, say, besan pakoras as a quick and tasty solution. Fast forward to now and the scenario has transformed. The default response today is to grab a packet of readymade fries or kebabs from the freezer, air fry/deep fry them, and serve with a smile.
The shift in behaviour is because consumers are seeking a wider culinary palate and—thanks to social media—want to recreate the visually appealing, restaurant-quality dishes at home. This desire for convenience while ensuring near-perfection has led to rising interest in ready-to-cook options. “The frozen ready-to-cook category is growing on the fine balance of convenience, variety and taste,” says Aditya Krishna, sales and marketing head, McCain Retail. He adds that freezer-friendly snacks are finding takers wherever disposable income is growing, awareness of the category is increasing, and family time has contracted.
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Without disclosing numbers, Krishna says the ready-to-cook food category is expected to grow at a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of 16 per cent over the next five years.
The segment is broadly categorised into Indian options, such as upma, rajma chawal, kadhi pakora chawal—where the likes of MTR and Haldiram dominate—and the snacking category, where brands like McCain, ITC MasterChef, Godrej Yummiez and Prasuma operate. ”The frozen ready-to-cook snacks category is estimated to be a Rs 3,500-crore market, with only 6-7 per cent penetration in the urban areas. This makes the opportunity huge,” says Mohit Marwaha, assistant vice-president of Yummiez, Godrej Tyson Foods.
In FY22-23, the Yummiez portfolio recorded more than 30 per cent growth in volumes. What helped this growth is the infrastructure. People are buying bigger, pricier refrigerators—a must for storing frozen food. Also, power availability and the supply network to maintain the right temperature in warehouses, with distributors, and even at the stores have improved over the years, enabling companies to maintain product quality.
It is no surprise then that brands are lapping up this trend and offering a wide array of ready-to-cook options. ”We are building our portfolio in line with what consumers are consuming outside and offering those options at home,” says Marwaha.
The Yummiez brand started with chicken nuggets and chicken fingers in 2008 and now boasts of a 50-strong product range of vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. McCain, which forayed into the Indian market in 2007 with French Fries and SMILES, today offers 17 ready-to-eat snacks, including veggie potatoes, aloo tikkis and mini samosas.
Metros currently are the largest market for frozen ready-to-eat snacks, with Tier 1 and 2 cities fast catching up. Metros generate over half of McCain’s sales, with the top six cities being major contributors. Krishna says the brand is expanding its footprint to 300 non-metro cities directly.
Yummiez is focusing on sachetisation to make its products affordable to a wider segment of consumers. It recently launched sachets of two chicken sausages at Rs 30, tying in with the plan to reach out to more smaller outlets and expand the base in Tier 3 and 4 markets. Another pivot for growth is the B2B opportunity in supplying frozen ready-to-snacks to pubs, quick service restaurant chains, and restaurants, which currently contribute to 20 per cent of their business.
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