Frozen meat sector in trouble as sales plunge

Frozen meat sales have fallen dramatically in the past year as consumers reject processed products with an unhealthy image, like the infamous

Turkey Twizzlers.

Market analysts TNS Worldpanel found sales of all frozen foods have been hit, but none so seriously as meat products, which saw sales plunge by 8.1%.

The big four supermarkets will have all been affected by the slump, but Asda, which sells proportionately more frozen food than any of the others, is likely to have been hardest hit.

Morrisons sells the second most frozen food, then Tesco. Sainsbury's sells the least frozen compared with fresh, but a spokesperson acknowledged "reduced the amount of space given in our freezers to frozen meat".

And it is not just meat. Frozen fish, vegetables and confectionary have all seen sales fall.

Tim Kershaw, CEO of supply chain management consultancy Libra Europe, said the frozen sector has image problems and what is more, it is their own fault: "Frozen food has suffered declining sales and a deteriorating image over the past 20 years as certain companies have focused consumers on low-quality, low-cost frozen goods."

A survey into shopping habits carried out by BMRB found that the frozen sector is seen as old fashioned.

"Somewhere along the line the concept of freezing mass produced pre-prepared food has lost the battle to gain full and unrivalled favour with the general public," states the report.

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