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Between holiday parties, family gatherings, and travel, December is full of festive fun. But the holidays can also be high-stress – and you can’t subsist entirely on gingerbread men when you’re decking the halls. At the end of the year, consumers are looking for convenience, with “effortless cooking” ranking as the top consumer need-state in […]

We can’t all afford a private chef – but with today’s culinary innovations, we can enjoy restaurant-quality meals at home. Ready meals across heat-and-eat categories have come a long way in recent years, thanks partly to the rising consumer demand for convenience. 67% of consumers want restaurant-quality flavor at home (Datassential), while 57% report buying

Sweet and savory Filipino spaghetti. Hearty, velvety West African stew. Meaty Hungarian goulash. Every region of the world has its own idea of comfort food, but they all tend to have one thing in common: mouth-watering sauces. Lucky for foodservice and manufacturing companies, custom sauces are one of the easiest, most operationally efficient ways to

The days of bland, mushy TV dinners are thankfully long gone. Consumers have bid adieu to gloppy gravies and meager protein portions. Today, value-added protein is all about fresh, customizable meal kits, lusciously marinated meats, and entrées pre-cooked to perfection. There’s serious demand, too: 63% of shoppers consistently look for “ready-to-cook” or “pre-marinated” proteins while

Have you ever finished an amazing meal and thought, “I wish I could buy this sauce by the bottle”? You’re not alone — and sauce suppliers are listening. By bringing their signature sauces straight to retail shelves, restaurants and QSRs are letting fans replicate that crave-worthy experience at home, one bottle at a time. But

Imagine a perfectly crafted signature dish exiting your kitchen: top-quality ingredients, exquisite plating, undeniably delicious — a delight! But then you see a photo of that same dish on social media, and it’s a soggy shadow of its former self. This delivery dilemma keeps restaurant operators up at night. And while there are solutions to be

The value-added protein market is really cooking thanks to the growing demand for ultra-convenient entrees with unforgettable flavor. In the U.S. alone, the value-added protein market is projected to grow at 5.2% CAGR through 2028 (Technomic, 2024). But with growth comes serious pressure, including rising labor costs, SKU complexity, and quality expectations. Today’s consumers don’t

Grilling is far more than a way to cook. It’s a time-honored ritual, a celebratory gathering, and a flavor experience all its own. For years, grilling season has been a powerhouse for retail meat and value-added protein sales — and the momentum keeps building. In 2023, pre-marinated meats and ready-to-cook proteins notched a 9% year-over-year sales

Store brands are stepping up – and shoppers are noticing. Once seen as the budget pick, private label food products are now earning serious shelf respect across North America, where they make up over 19% of total grocery sales (PLMA, 2024). Today’s consumers expect store brands to deliver just as much flavor and quality as

Ever feel like your taste buds are stuck on repeat? You’re not alone – over 72% of consumers say they’re tired of eating the same meals over and over again (Datassential, 2024). In fact, consumer burnout due to repetitive, underwhelming meal options is so prevalent, it now has a name: “taste fatigue.” While convenience remains