This report looks at the following areas:
- Cooking frequency
- Seasonings, herbs and spices used in cooking
- Table and cooking sauce types and frequency of use
- Desirable premium features in sauces and seasonings
- Interest in sauces and seasonings for different dishes
Succeed in the crowded sauce and seasoning market by focusing on minimalistic cooking, highlighting health benefits, and targeting region-specific opportunities.
Phurisa Phagudom, Research Analyst – Food and Drink, Thailand
Market Definitions
For the purposes of this Report, Mintel has used the following definitions:
This report covers the Thai retail market for sauces and seasoning. Sauces include cooking and table sauces. Seasoning includes seasonings, seasoning blends, herbs and spices.
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- What you need to know
- Key issues covered in this Report
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MARKET LANDSCAPE
- APAC condiment launches vary greatly, aligning with distinct traditional habits
- Graph 1: sauce and seasoning launches, by sub-category, 2020-25
- Over the last three years, Thai sauce and seasoning brands have focused on securing core products, rather than new launches
- Graph 2: sauce and seasoning product launches, by launch type, 2020-25
- Cooking frequency remains stable, with clear disparity between daily and 2-6 times-a-week chefs
- Graph 3: cooking frequency, 2023/25
- Daily Chefs demographic profile
- Frequent-weekly Chefs demographic profile
- Thailand’s sauce and seasonings market is well-developed, with widespread use across dishes
- Graph 4: purchase and interest of sauces and seasonings for different dish types in the last three months, 2025
- Cooking therapy: enjoyment correlates with cooking frequency
- Government initiatives signal a good start in driving consumers away from excess sauce intake
- Mintel’s Reports trace a clear shift in the sauce and seasoning market
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TARGET EMERGING YOUNG CHEFS BY TAPPING INTO MEAL-NIMALIST COOKING
- Now: despite stable cooking frequency, consumers are using fewer sauces and seasonings
- Graph 5: percentage point change in daily users of different sauce types, 2023-25
- Now: cooking frequency stabilises, with many using fewer sauces and seasonings
- Graph 6: percentage point change in daily users of different seasoning types, herbs and spices, 2023-25
- Now: adopt a minimalist approach to target Gen Zs entering the cooking scene
- Graph 7: Daily Chefs, by generation, 2023/25
- Now: emphasise the ‘a little goes a long way’ approach to match the minimalistic trend
- Now: simplify meal-making for young chefs by streamlining additional time-consuming procedures
- Next: claim the top spot as the go-to sauce in younger generations’ cooking repertoires
- Graph 8: generation group, by repertoire of any sauces used in the past three months, 2025
- Next: integrate into Gen Zs’ cooking routines through their preferred cuisine type
- Graph 9: cuisines that Gen Zs have eaten and want to eat more often, 2025
- Next: create sauce to enhance dishes’ flavours without overpowering the inherent taste of their ingredients
- Now: a combination of sauces and seasonings for stir-fries and hot pots will offer the widest market reach
- Now: offer products for hot pot consumption that promote convenience and fresh ingredients
- Next: inspire consumers to explore the versatility of hot pot seasoning in other dishes
- Next: enhance portionability to unlock interest in advanced dishes
- Future: offer products to re-purpose leftover meals and prevent prolonged storage
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DOUBLE DOWN ON HEALTHY VARIANTS
- Now: ‘plus’ and ‘free-from’ benefits harness higher value than versatility and sustainability
- Graph 10: features for which consumers are willing to pay more in sauces and seasonings, 2025
- Now: consumers are limiting their condiment use to reduce sodium and sugar
- Graph 11: consumers who are actively limiting their dipping sauces and seasonings intake to reduce sodium or sugar, by generation, 2025
- Now: partial reduction is sufficient to resonate with demand for less sodium and sugar
- Now: formulate guilt-free offerings that maintain great taste without requiring a complete cutback
- Now: double down on all-natural formulations to value up
- Graph 12: features for which consumers are willing to pay more in sauces and seasonings, by gender and age, 2025
- Now: level up naturalness with an emphasis on whole ingredients
- Next: high protein is the next white space in added-nutrition offerings
- Next: premiumisation opportunities lie in functional health benefits
- Graph 13: features for which consumers are willing to pay more in sauces and seasonings, by generation, 2025
- Next: leverage dietary fibre and probiotic content to claim gut health benefits
- Next: tap into the niche functional brain and energy market
- Future: purposeful seasoning will reinvent condiments to support consumers through health burdens and bring back the joy of eating
- Future: let consumers seize control of their sugar and sodium intake
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UNLOCK REGION-SPECIFIC OPPORTUNITIES
- Curate region-specific offerings to meet diverse preferences of taste profiles and cooking methods
- Now: Bangkok residents focus on convenience and portionability
- Graph 14: attitudes towards sauces and seasonings, by region, 2025
- Now: offer demographic-specific options to Bangkokians
- Now: conveniently portioned to save space in Bangkok households
- Next: tap into the gold mine of paste formats in Southern Thai dishes
- Graph 15: consumers who regularly use seasonings, herbs and spices in Thai dishes, by region, 2025
- Next: elevate convenience and simplify the cooking process of homemade Southern cuisines
- Next: create products suited to Northeastern Thailand’s signature grilled dishes
- Graph 16: purchase of sauces and seasonings for different dish types in the last three months, by region, 2025
- Next: make sauces and seasonings that purposefully enhance the flavours of grilled meat
- Next: Northern Thais seek comfort in braised dishes
- Graph 17: purchase of sauces and seasonings for dishes braised in flavourful broth, by region, 2025
- Next: create nutrient-rich cooking pastes designed to reduce cooking time for older adults making Northern Thai braised dishes
- Next: adopt novel formats to make regional tastes more accessible
- Next: freeze-dried regional sauces and seasonings can bring consumers closer to home
- Future: take regional foods global with customisable hybrid flavour innovation
- Key takeaways
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APPENDIX
- Report definition
- Consumer research methodology
- Generations
- TURF analysis
- Repertoire analysis
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