To capitalise on opportunities in the 2024 market, this report identifies key users of ready meals in Thailand, factors triggering increased consumption, upcoming eating occasions and potential flavor innovations.
Thailand Ready Meals Market – Current Landscape
In Thailand, major innovators like 7-Eleven and CPF Food and Beverages are spearheading advancements through diverse strategies. While convenience stores initially fuelled ready meal innovation, recent years have seen an expansion into gourmet stores, accommodating consumers shopping for home use and stockpiling. Elevated demands for convenience, health, and new flavor experiences are the driving forces behind recent innovations in this product category.
Thailand Ready Meals Market Report – What’s Inside?
Key Topics Analyzed in the Report
- Usage frequency of ready meals and competing meals
- Consumers’ level of dissatisfaction in ready meals and how to improve it
- Meal occasions for ready meals and competing meals
- Cuisine type of interest
- Attitudes towards ready meals
Report Scope
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
Ready meals include frozen, chilled and shelf-stable meals that require easy preparation. It also includes prepared meals.
Frozen ready meals include frozen dumplings/wontons, buns/dim sum, frozen meat meal set, frozen pizza/pasta and so forth. Chilled ready meals include ready-made lunch boxes/dishes that only need simple heating, sandwiches, sushi/rice balls, salad, etc. Shelf-stable ready meals include ready-to-eat foods (eg deli, Oden), which are defined as cooked unpackaged foods, and ambient packaged staple foods (eg canned mixed congee). Ready to cook foods refer to semi-finished products specifically positioned as needing no further preparation on the part of the consumer other than opening the packet and cooking the product according to the on-pack instructions.
Note: This report does not discuss instant foods, which consist of instant noodles, rice, pasta and self-heating foods, but will mention them for comparison and understanding of consumers’ total meal repertoire.
Expert Analysis
Mintel’s food industry expert for Thailand delivers in-depth insights with this report.
Secure lunch and expand to breakfast and dinner with healthier meals, packaging innovations and new age-targeted culinary experiences.
Pimwadee Aguilar
Associate Director Food & Drink, Thai Consumer
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executive summary
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Graph 1: consumption of meals at different occasions, 2023
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key trends and market factors
- Graph 2: ready meal CAGR*, 2018-22
- Graph 3: ready meal production trends, 2018-26**
- Graph 4: ready meal* production volumes, by market, 2020
- Graph 5: % launches of ready meals, by store type, 2020-23
- Increasing demand for convenient meals
- Graph 6: convenience claims on ready meal launches, 2020-23
- Graph 7: convenience claims on ready meal launches, 2020-23
- Refocused attention on health
- Graph 8: top three most important factors considered when choosing packaged food and/or drinks, 2022
- Graph 9: value indicators in food and drink*, 2022
- Graph 10: top growing health-related claims in ready meals, 2018-23
- Graph 11: animal and plant protein ingredients in ready meal launches, by ingredient, 2020-23
- Graph 12: % ready meal launches, by ethical claim, 2020-2023
- Graph 13: % ready meal launches, by ethical claim, 2020-23
- Hunger for new experiences
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what consumers want and why
- Graph 14: consumption frequency of various types of meals, 2023
- Graph 15: consumption frequency of ready meals, by age and gender, 2023
- Graph 16: overall satisfaction of ready meals currently available in the market, by financial status and age, 2023
- Graph 17: value improvements which would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, 2023
- Overcome the consumption barrier with healthier meals
- Graph 18: improvements which would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, 2023
- Graph 19: improvements which would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, by gender, age and financial status, 2023
- Graph 20: health-related improvements that would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, by age, gender and financial status, 2023
- Graph 21: added benefits that would appeal to consumers when choosing a food and drink product, by age and gender, 2023
- Packaging focus: convenience and sustainability
- Graph 22: packaging-related improvements that would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, 2023
- Graph 23: packaging-related improvements that would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, by parental status, 2023
- Graph 24: improvements which would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, by employment and financial status, 2023
- Graph 25: packaging-related improvements that would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, by age, 2023
- Tap into occasions beyond lunch
- Graph 26: consumption of meals at different occasions, 2023
- Graph 27: consumption of ready meals in different occasions, by employment status, 2023
- Meet evolving culinary choices
- Graph 28: types of cuisine consumers would be interested in for ready meals, 2023
- Graph 29: flavour-related improvements which would make consumers more likely to consume ready meals instead of other types of meals, 2023
- Graph 30: types of cuisine consumers would be interested in for ready meals, by age and gender, 2023
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appendix
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