New offerings seek to satisfy consumer appetite for meal kits

Suppliers and retailers continue to stir activity in the rapidly growing meal kit market as busy consumers demand more options for convenient meal solutions.

On Tuesday, more than a dozen retailers in 27 states — including Costco, Harris Teeter, Tops Markets, Hy-Vee, Weis Markets and Gelson’s Markets — began carrying Chef’d meal kits, rolled out in partnership with Smithfield Foods. The move marks the first foray by Los Angeles-based Chef’d into the retail arena.

Each in-store meal kit contains ready-to-cook, pre-portioned ingredients, including fresh herbs, leafy greens and USDA Choice proteins. Total prep-to-plate times are 10 to 30 minutes, with one- or two-pan cleanup.

Starting at $14.99, the kits serve two or more people. Choices include 20-clove garlic chicken with mashed purple potatoes and spinach, weeknight chicken pad Thai with carrots and sugar snap peas, and black truffle butter sirloin steaks with roasted garlic potatoes and asparagus.

The company said Chefd.com, which serves up thousands of recipes for next-day delivery, has been the only nonsubscription meal service from its launch, and its partnerships with retailers will bring its meal kits to new audiences and occasions.

“Meal kits are the fastest-growing channel across the entire food industry. The expansion of Chef’d into retail enables us to serve the large group of shoppers who have never tried a meal kit but are eager for nonsubscription solutions,” senior vice president of retail Sean Butler said in a statement. “Our goal is to give more shoppers more meals in more places to help them eat better, save time, and explore new flavors.”

Citing foodservice data specialist Food Genius, Chef’d reported that as many as 80% of Americans don’t know what they are having for dinner by 4 p.m. that same day.

“Chef’d looks forward to rapid expansion in the coming months,” chief executive officer Kyle Ransford commented. “We are dedicated to investing in new technology to continue to enhance the at-home cooking experience and to provide greater value to our customers.”

Also this week, Wellesley, Mass.-based grocery chain Roche Bros. launched an assortment of meal kits from Just Add Cooking at select stores.

Priced at $18.99 to $21.99 for two servings, the kits contain fresh ingredients from New England farmers and artisans and take 15 to 30 minutes to prepare.

Six recipes from Boston-based Just Add Cooking are available in the refrigerated section at 11 Roche stores: asparagus risotto, broccoli rabe and sausage pasta, beef stir fry, chicken marsala with polenta, Irish smoked haddock chowder, and tandoori chicken with roasted chickpeas.

The Roche stores offering the Just Add Cooking meal kits are in Weston, Waltham, Medfield, Downtown Crossing, West Roxbury, Wellesley, Westwood, Natick, Millis, Mashpee and Sudbury, Mass.

Meal kit diversity

A growth catalyst for meal kit space is a large, untapped consumer market. According to research by Nielsen, 9% of Americans have purchased a meal kit in the last six months (10.5 million households), and 25% would consider trying one in the next six months (over 30 million households). Nielsen noted that, of the 9% of Americans who have tried a meal kit, 6% bought it online, where meal kit companies are seeing sharp growth.

Still, in-store meal kits tallied $154.6 million in sales, up more than 26% year over year, in 2017. Providing some context for the market’s size, Nielsen reported that brick-and-mortar sales for center store edibles (grocery, dairy, frozen foods) slipped 0.1% last year to $374 billion.

Also this week, Wellesley, Mass.-based grocery chain Roche Bros. launched an assortment of meal kits from Just Add Cooking at select stores.

Meal kits’ market potential has continued to draw new players. This week, for example, Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. made a $4 million equity investment in Purple Carrot, a provider of 100% plant-based meal kits. The Needham, Mass.-based company, launched in October 2014, is known for partnering with NFL quarterback Tom Brady to help him launch TB12 Performance Meals.

Purple Carrot delivers fresh, pre-portioned ingredients with step-by-step guidance to help people to cook healthy, plant-based meals at home.

"Securing this strategic investment from Fresh Del Monte is a huge validation of our business model, and an important step forward for our company. Helping people eat more plant-based foods represents our differentiated, purpose-driven commitment to making the planet and the people who live on it healthier," said Purple Carrot founder and CEO Andy Levitt. "This investment by Fresh Del Monte will strengthen our ability to create meaningful and lasting change, improve our core product, and open up a world of possibilities for brand expansion."

The market for plant-based eating is projected to double to about $25 billion from 2015 to 2020, while sales of meal kits are estimated to grow from $1.6 billion in 2016 to $35 billion in 2025, Purple Carrot reported.

“Purple Carrot has tremendous growth momentum in the fast-growing plant-based food segment with a well-known brand and an authentic connection with its customers,” according to Mohammad Abu-Ghazaleh, chairman and CEO of Fresh Del Monte, based in Coral Gables, Fla. “We believe there will be significant opportunities for our teams to create increased value through product mix and channel expansion.”

Online grocer Peapod also is catering to vegan consumers. The Ahold Delhaize USA subsidiary on Tuesday unveiled a partnership with vegan chef, restauranteur and cookbook author Chloe Coscarelli on a selection of meal kits. Branded “Chloe Flavor,” the items include General Tso’s tofu, brussels sprouts tacos, McVegan breakfast sandwiches and Shelley’s matzo.

Peapod cited research from Mintel finding that 58% of Americans would like to add more plant-based foods to their diets

"We're constantly looking for ways we can delight our shoppers with a great selection that fits a variety of today's diets," said Spencer Baird, senior vice president of merchandising at Peapod. "Partnering with Chloe and co-creating a meal kit with Chloe is the perfect way to bring fresh ideas to vegans, vegetarians, flexitarians or anyone just looking to embrace more meatless meals."