As noted in Mintel International Group's (Chicago) new report on the meal kit market in the U.S., two of the category's three segments have benefited from the addition of several major product introductions, as well as accompanying advertising support. As a result, the category experienced a rapid growth between 1998 and 2003, the period under review in Mintel's report, yet sales growth stopped in 2003, with the withdrawal of several high-profile products from the market.
Mintel identifies three types of shelf-stable meal kits: those requiring meat, those including meat and pizza kits. Furthermore, meal kits require the user to combine and, at times, add additional ingredients (such as meat), either in a skillet or in a baking dish to be cooked. Convenience, the founding principle of the meal kit, has been taken to a new level, with 72% of Mintel's respondents reporting they had eaten from a restaurant (fast food or otherwise) in the past week. This is compared with 46% who said they had used heat-and-eat options during that time, both of which finished ahead of traditional meal kits, as did frozen meals.