The prepared meals and side dish category has declined in the past several years and it’s a trend that is expected to continue despite the popularity of several of its segments.
Category data from Mintel and Information Resources Inc. (IRI) show total retail sales of prepared meals and side dishes declined 4% to $9.9 billion in 2013, at current prices. Within the category, refrigerated meals and side dishes improved their respective sales from 2008-13; however, their sales were not enough to offset sharp declines within the much larger frozen single-serve and multi-serve meal segments.