Understanding the Frozen Category From a

Consumer Perspective Waves

24th April 2014

Agenda

What is ‘Frozen’ to consumers: In home

Packaging

In store

Overview of challenges and barriers

Key issues for category sub-segments

Conclusions

3

Research Objectives:

‘To understand underlying shopper and consumer

dynamics driving the performance of the frozen

food category (both at total category level and at

key sub category level: frozen meat/burgers;

chicken products; pizza; ready meals; fish;

vegetables) in UK and Ireland so as to inform

future marketing and consumer strategies’ 3

Online discussion forum: 33 consumers over 5 days (21 UK

and 12 Ireland) Including: Supermarket visit where

they took photos of the aisle and any interesting frozen products

In home interviews: 30 consumers London /

M25 (7), Manchester

(7), Nottingham (6),

Cork (3) and Dublin (7)

Accompanied shops: With 20 of the above, ranging

from ‘top up’ to ‘stock up’ visits

In Home Perspective

What is frozen?

Anything entering the consumer's

freezer is part of frozen: Est at least half is not bought frozen

So anchored in ‘my freezer’

Core benefit of convenience belongs to

the device not the category

Convenience: Easy /quick meal Snacks to keep you going Meal / Menu tailoring Freezer plays a role on most days

Choice / Options

Poor aesthetics: Just doesn’t look as nice (as fresh)

Very functional and lacks emotional appeal

Perceived poorer quality (than fresh)

Less waste: Lasts longer Precise amounts

Can be a guilty pleasure

Consumer creates unique category, ‘my frozen’

Whatever is in my freezer: Yes, ‘bought frozen’

Probably more bought fresh

Bakery is key, fuelled by offers and

minimising waste

Others eg pastry

And for some more portions & leftovers

Issue Veg Fish Prods Pizzas Poultry Prods

Meat / Burgers

Ready Meals

Who is core user?

Adults Children & Adults

All + Guests

Kids love them and teenagers can cook them

Children Adults Teens & Adults

Usefulness ***** *** ***** *** ** ****

Confidence in product

***** **** ***** *** * (if bought frozen)

**** (if bought

fresh)

**

Role of brands

Key: Birds Eye, McCains, Green Isle

Key: Birds Eye, Donegal Catch, Youngs

Key: Goodfellas Dr Oetker Chicago

Pizza Express

Limited: (Big Als)

Critical but

minimal: (Birds Eye,

Finest)

Own label popular: + Weight

Watchers, Healthy Living and some

non frozen brands entering

Whether bought frozen?

All All Most (not Pizza

Express ‘treats’)

All Minority (offers in fresh key)

Most

Consumer overview of products from their freezer

Meat the key component of

buy fresh and freeze: Almost all consumers did this, using up

valuable space

And all think they do it more now:

Due to offers (eg 3 for £10)

Innovation in jar / packet sauces

Local butchers / meat shops doing

deals too

A behaviour given impetus by

horsemeat scandal

Important everywhere,

even more in Ireland

The casual ‘snacks and light meals’ category

Articulated repeatedly by consumers

and defined by usage (not product): Snacks and ‘in between meal’ meals

Fish finger buttie, nuggets to keep the kids

going after school, etc

Very casual and extremely valuable

Not reflected in store

Opportunity exists here

12

Case Study: Single D, Stretford Karen has a busy life and wants lots of

instant food available; quite erratic lifestyle as working and caring for

father. Heavy Iceland & Asda shopper (but uses several other stores too)

13

Case Study: Family with two young children under 10, D Maria has a very strict weekly budget and a heavy user of frozen; but husband thinks fresher is better and they buy a lot of fresh meat to freeze on offer (at Tesco). Limited repertoire of meals (lots of fresh

mince that is frozen); spag bol several times a week with sauces “everything comes out of a jar or packet in this family”

14

Case Study: Family with older teens Claire is a lighter (almost heavy) frozen food user but says she ‘works her freezer hard’. She has teenage

children and several in their 20’s who regularly return with partners in tow. She need lots of food options to cater for a wide range of tastes and fads; and people just turning up. ‘Discovered’ Aldi last year and goes

every Sunday for main shop.

Freezers: Out of sight

Freezers are squeezed into the home Very few have them in the garage

Storage space; the frozen cupboard

Involves rummaging about

Product ‘shoved in’

Hard to manage

Freezers appear chaotic

And at times, uncared for

and almost unusable

And with mystery

products……

In comparison

fridges are

much neater

Manchester:

Nottingham:

Consider this example:C2, older

family with 4 children in Cork

Packaging Issues

Packaging Challenges

Reaction to packaging re-enforces

poor perceptions of the category Uncared for product

Packs take up too much space, esp

when part used (eg 4 of 8 pieces left)

Many repackage: Positive: reduce waste; enhance convenience

Negative: because pack won’t fit in

Packaging at odds with needs: With freezer space at a premium, offers

(which promote more, not cheaper) can

appear at odds with consumer needs

Discounters viewed more favourably;

usually a better price for the same size

If original packaging doesn’t fit, some

keep instructions (and some do not)

23

Packaging gets ripped open – and cannot be resealed

Many examples of loose product

Squashed and damaged

Frequently packaging does not help freezer management

Difficult to open, impossible to reseal

Exposed product commonplace

In Store Perspective

Frozen Aisle: Usual rules don’t apply

Looks uninviting

Very functional, unemotional

Not tactile; no permission or

encouragement to explore and handle

Perceived lack of POS / offers

At the end ‘I just want to get home’ Be quick or even avoid altogether

Macclesfield

26

These cabinets look empty due to light reflection; Asda, Cheshire

Poorly stocked Sainsburys in Kings Lynn

Clinical and uninviting environments, esp Tesco

Dublin Clarehall

Discounters and some

others integrate freezers

better:

-No frozen aisle

-Creates more welcoming

category environment

Lidl, Artane

Supervalu, Kilester

Lidl, Fishponds, Bristol

Tesco, Barking

Open freezers more inviting:

Doors seen as a barrier to product; “I only open them if I want something.”

Side ‘flags’ used here to indicate frozen aisle by price point thought more colourful

Asda, Feltham

Offers grab attention and bring colour;

suggest retailer is making an effort

Iceland

Morrisons

Tesco

Lidl

Role of Offer Freezers

Mentioned spontaneously

Recognised as mixing things up Meal ideas; covering all the bases

Many like them but ‘a bit weird’ Healthy Living curry next to pizza

Debate as to whether they encourage

you visit the aisle or help you avoid it

Jumbled up offer freezers -These examples Tesco Macclesfield and Tesco Dublin Artane Cross

31

The Crunchie dividing wall; Tesco Artane Cross, Dublin

Ben & Jerrys and Faggots; Tesco Macclesfield

Implications of store experience

Rarely lingering in the frozen aisle Typically ‘get in get out’

New strategies needed

Frequent opportunities for purchase

avoidance, eg: Someone stood in the way of cabinet

Uncertain whether pack will fit in my freezer

Innovation not being noticed

The Wider Perspective: Issues impacting frozen

Wider food-retail issues

impact frozen: Much less ‘stock up’ shopping:

Stores are everywhere

22 of 33 say now going more

frequently

Growth of discounters

Easier frozen experience

19 of 33 using them a lot more

So easy, part of convenience

Convenience stores living up to name

No longer for distress purchasing

They have offers too (inc fresh)

Frozen very limited

The frozen aisle; Tesco Metro, Cheadle Hulme, Manchester

Category specific issues: Language of chilled superior

Freezer enables fresh

Packaging needs improving

Improve shopabaility

Awareness of innovation needed

Broader factors: Less stock-up shopping

Growth of discounters

Convenience living up to name

Cooking in media rarely

features frozen

Combine to inhibit category positives:

Convenience

Less waste

Better value

Frozen not living up to potential

Consumer review of frozen category

sub-segments

Category Perceptions

Important to get beyond the initial

frozen category reaction

Superficial perceptions not strong: Poorer nutrition

Cheap (and nasty)

But attitudes differ by sub-segment

Frozen Vegetables: The most positive segment; can be better

than fresh

Peas the benchmark

Carrots less so (soggy)

Mixed and other greens appreciated

Pack size a key issue; can be

compounded by offers

Innovation seen positively and is about:

Pack sizes (eg Single Steamers)

Sauces (eg cauliflower cheese)

Items that help me cook from

scratch (eg stir fry & casserole

products, herbs)

Frozen ‘Potato’ Products: To consumers separate to vegetables

and part of ‘snacking’

Includes Yorkshires

No quality concerns and better than I

could make (esp chips, Yorkshires)

An invaluable category

Quick ‘cheat’ food

Options for families

Innovation largely seen as about potato

formats (eg baked potatoes)

Frozen Pizzas: Popular and performs well

Many prefer frozen over fresh

Convenient and easy; good to have in

for the unexpected

Innovation, flavours and bread formats,

viewed very positively

Merchandising dull if displayed side on

but very positive if viewed from ‘above’

(this example Dunnes)

Frozen Fish Products: Easier and family-friendly way to access

fish

A positive relationship with frozen;

(some know it is frozen when caught)

Attitudes to frozen quite different to

fresh; breaded an important association

(but less than for poultry)

Concerns over quality (mushy / grey)

and portion size

Fish product innovation:

Consumer sees three types To address perceived poor quality (eg

Iceland)

Coatings; but more of the same!

‘Real’ innovation eg sauces, clear

packaging, etc

Frozen Poultry Products: Majority eating chicken but relatively

poor attitudes to frozen poultry products

given extent of fresh purchase

Concerns over meat quality /

reconstituted / injected

Perceptions anchored in breaded

‘Childish’ driven by nuggets and

goujons

‘Outdated’ Chicken Kiev been

around for ages

Lacks adult brands; though Big Als very

popular in Ireland

Poultry Innovation Poor: Innovation very limited and only seen

at the value end (eg mimicking KFC,

joint alternatives)

Consumers found it difficult to find

‘interesting’ products from this segment

Quality cues missing from frozen

Free Range, freedom food,

organic, etc

Consumer sees greater innovation in

fresh (prepared chicken, DIY coating,

etc) “To be honest there is only so much you can do with a piece of

chicken and some breadcrumbs. I’ve noticed a trend to try and

imitate the traditional Saturday night takeaway. For example, KFC

do a chicken bucket for approx £12 and this can be bought in

Iceland for £5.” (C2, heavy, pre-family)

Frozen Meat / Meat Products: Meat being used by many

Esp bags of chops

Chicken / Mince less prevalent

Good value but fresh offers eroding;

and can be too cheap

Awareness of quality issues: Looking at

water, meat and fat content

Horsemeat had greatest impact here

Meat products (sausages, pies &

pasties) thought poor and fresh better

Very little innovation recognised:

Greggs pasties an exception

Occasional cooking enablers

And meat substitutes

Burgers: Many negative perceptions

Lack of trust evident

A unique situation; very seasonal &

greatest quality concerns

Fresh burgers seem readily available

and easier to judge quality

Some claim to make their own

“I think what happens is that now I don't trust any burgers and just because a thing is cheap I still have the right to know what is in them as it is my choice what I give my family to eat and if there horse meat in my burgers I should be told this on the package no matter what I pay for them.” (D, heavy, older family)

“Fresh offer the image that they have been prepared before your eyes, unlike frozen burgers where there is uncertainty surrounding the processes!” (C2, heavy, pre family)

Frozen Ready Meals: When explored consumers found many

‘interesting’ products

Several commented that this

surprised them

Consumer needs to be engaged in a

conversation to get past more negative

initial reactions:

Impossible to judge quality

Concerns over additives, fat & salt

Portions are shrinking

A guilty pleasure

Convenience is key and teenagers an

important user group

Innovation Surprising: Consumer needs permission to explore

Several positive aspects to innovation:

Tasty and adventurous flavours

Brands starting to matter (eg Bisto,

Sharwoods and more established

Weight Watchers, Healthy Living)

Colourful

But innovation lacks consumer visibility

and little experimentation was reported

Issue Veg Fish Prods Pizzas Poultry Prods

Meat / Burgers

Ready Meals

Overall rating of frozen segment

***** *** **** *** * ***

Key issues Frozen at source a positive

Makes fish accessible

Sooo useful

Juvenile Can’t judge meat

quality

Concern over ingredients

Iconic product Peas & chips

Fish fingers The Pizza itself

Nuggets & Kiev

None Curry, Chilli, Lasagne, Spag

Bog

Perceived quality

The best way to buy

some

Poor, shrinking portions

Good (some think better than

chilled)

Poor Concern Variable, being

lifted by brands (inc Healthy

Living)

Perceived innovation

Acceptable Improving Good Poor; needed

Little scope Quite good (even better

when explored)

Buying more frozen nowadays?

n/a More Much more

More Less Some more / Some less

Consumer Overview of Frozen Category Sub-segments

49

Conclusions and suggested actions

Consumers (Empathy)

In Store

(Shopability)

Products

(Communication

and Innovation)

Conclusions and Actions

Consumers: Empathy Only one key element of what’s in my freezer

Competing with fresh

Recognise role of snacking, light meals and home cooked

Communicate and innovate around these situations

Products: Communication & Innovation Dial up quality and taste cues; borrow from fresh (esp poultry)

Packaging innovation to improve convenience

Fish products: Maintain innovation momentum (not there yet)

Poultry: Innovation needed (lacking) and communicate cues of fresh

Meat & meat products: Reassurance communication needed

Ready Meals: awareness / engagement needed (innovation is ahead

of knowledge)

In Store: Shopability Re-evaluate visual, verbal and spatial cues

Tap into ‘get in get out’ mind-set

Consider:

Fragmentation of category to encourage involvement

Products based on usage not ingredients

Appendix: Frozen in respondents

own words…..

The language of frozen food

“buying a product what you don’t know

when you will eat it, but then it’s easy

enough to cook in the microwave” (D, heavy, post family)

“quick and tasty and generally

suited to reheating in a

microwave” (C2, lighter, post family)

“It’s the handiest thing to have in the

freezer, once I have them there’s

always a dinner there. So handy

especially when you’re a working

mam” (C2, heavy, young family)

“Frozen food is convenience

food, you know it won’t go off

and it’s readily available to use” (C2, heavy, young family)

What is frozen food all about……..?

“Frozen food cuts down on

waste, I got sick of throwing out

veg that had turned” (C2, lighter,

young family)

“It’s ready fast after a long day at

work” (C2, heavy, older family)

“Quick and easy to cook and most

people like it” (C2, heavy, older family)

“i tend to sway towards fresh as much as

possible, you think it’s better for you” (C2,

lighter, older family)

The language of frozen food

“ready meals - they are helpful

when I don’t have time to make

a proper meal” (D, heavy, post family)

“.......the obligatory fish fingers

and chicken nuggets for the

grandchildren” (C2, lighter, post family)

“I have a lot of frozen chicken

and beef as it is really convenient

to be able to cook staples after

work” (C2, lighter, pre family)

“frozen chicken – because I can do

a curry or stir fry – something

quick with it” (C2, lighter, older family)

What product best sums up frozen food and why?

“The bulk buy start-type

meals...the type of thing you can

just shove in the oven and snack

on whilst cooking or before going

on a night out” (C2, heavy, pre family)

“I think mixed veg sums up frozen food for me, they

are so handy to have and once added to any dish

they complete the meal” (C2, heavy, post family)

Shopability of frozen in respondents own words…..

“I find it easy to go through the shop

without looking at freezers if I don't

need items as they’re not at my eye

level and there not jumping out at me.

recently Lidl have started to do special

offers freezers.” (C2, heavy, post family)

“Yes there are a lot of deals in

the frozen aisles but there are

more meal deals in the fresh

aisles!” (C2, heavy, young family)

“I would never open (freezer) doors

unless I’m going to buy it. …..With door

you have to decide you want it” (C2, Post

family, Heavy)

“Cold! Boring, not inspiring, plain,

lots of deals and offers on show” (C2, lighter, pre family)

“Cold is the first word I’d use, it’s my least favourite aisle and I usually

grab and run when I go down this section!!” (C2, lighter, older family)

Macro trends: In respondents own words….

“My husband and I are both self employed and I

suppose that although we manage to pay all our

bills, we are conscious about getting value for

money. When I did a weekly shop, I wasted a lot of

food by just throwing it out and I was more

inclined to buy a lot of rubbish (cakes, biscuits). I

find that shopping everyday you are more inclined

to buy what you need and probably have fresher

products as well.” (C2, heavy, young family)

“It’s so easy to cook from

scratch now – there’s help

everywhere and we’re always

discussing recipes at work.” (C2, lighter, older family)

“I find these stores are better value for money, I can do a

full shop at Aldi for half the price of Tesco... I wouldn’t

dream of going to Tesco now.” (D, heavy, young family)

“Asda, once or twice. Tesco Metro

three to five times. Sainsburys and

Waitrose once. Farmfoods once.” (D, heavy, post family)

“We shop around a lot and look out

for good deals. I do a main shop once

a month in either Aldi or Tesco and

we use our local Asda for top up

shopping. That usually happens

about 3 times a week so I can get

fresh produce.” (C2, heavy, young family)

Fish Products: In respondents own words….

“Some products needs more fish in

relation to the amount of batter, on

the other hand Tesco own fish

products need to be bigger in size ,

there is a good amount of fish to

batter but the product needs to be

bigger.” (C2, lighter, young family)

“I think it's easy to feel a bit cheated

…... You see some nicely packaged

fish fillets with a tasty image on the

front with big succulent fillets and

then you open to see tiny grey-ish

fillets. That can be a bit

disappointing!” (D, lighter, pre-family)

“Totally agree about the ratio of batter/breadcrumbs to fish. I don't buy

any coated fish now (other than fish fingers - can't beat a fish finger butty)

However, probably would if they could get it right.” (C2, lighter, post family)

“I would like to see the amount of ice glaze on prawns reduced as you

are just paying for water. Also scampi – make it clear whether it’s

reformed or whole tail. Some brands do make this clear. I don’t like over

regular shape of fish fillets as it suggests that it’s more like processed

rubbish, I’d like less and compact packaging” (C2, lighter, older family)

Poultry Products: In respondents own words….

“Tenders, goujons, dippers, nuggets,

fingers, popcorn, strips (whether they

are breaded or southern fried) I just

don’t know how many more names they

can come up with to mask chicken. Ok

they may be different shapes but at the

end of the day they 99% taste the

same.” (C2, heavy, pre family)

“The Birdseye chicken range has

newer products ie: chicken chargrills

in different flavours, peri peri, garlic,

southern fried and I have seen a new

chicken burger which is much thicker

and more meaty than the usual

chicken burger.” (D, heavy, older family)

“I believe that chicken Kiev, chicken dippers, nuggets, chicken breast etc have

been around for a number of years and that the only difference that I can see

would be the packaging. An example of this would be Birds Eye Chicken Breasts

in crumb/batter. I realize that there are a lot more than I've mentioned but I haven't

seen much change over the last few years.” (C2, heavy, young family)

“To be honest there is only so much you can do with a piece of chicken

and some breadcrumbs. I’ve noticed a trend of the supermarket to try and

imitate the traditional Saturday night takeaway. For example, KFC do a

chicken bucket for approx £12 and this can be bought in Iceland for £5.” (C2, heavy, pre-family)

Ready Meals: In respondents own words

“I think you can easily buy fresh meat

and there are so many fresh / jars /

packets of sauces that easily make a

good meal without the need to buy

ready meals.” (C2, heavy, young family)

“I'm very conscious about my diet. I wont eat frozen ready meals so

I just don't go there and tempt myself with the idea of eating a roast

in 10 minutes. They're usually pretty low in nutritional value and

flavour despite having flavour enhancers” (D, lighter, pre family)

“Chicken in red wine sauce

sounds delicious. I will look

out for that next time I am

shopping.” (C2, lighter, older family)

“I saw the Bisto cottage pie in Lidl

..it was on offer and looked nice so

I bought one for my husband to

try.” (C2, heavy, post family) “If you’re on the go…from time to time but

its not something you want to be eating 5

days a week.” (C2, lighter, Pre-Family)