The frozen food market in Brazil

Deep-frozen is a food preservation technique that consists of rapidly cooling food at low temperatures. The technique gave its name to frozen foods, a term used to refer to the set of foods that are preserved by this method. Frozen foods are therefore a sub-segment of the wider food market. The market for frozen foods can be broken down by product, the most common being fruit, vegetables, ready-to-eat dishes, meat and fish.

This study on deep-frozen products will focus on the different market segments, B2B and consumers, and the different forms they can take (home delivery, for example). The manufacturing processes or the products themselves will also be addressed.

In a difficult context, marked by the maturing of the market and the apparent lack of consumer interest in frozen foods, the strategy of the dominant players must evolve towards greater diversification of their offer in order to increase the volume of sales. Moreover, within the frozen food segments there are sub-segments that are gaining ground, such as products without added gluten, zero-lactose or organic products.

Since the 1980s, frozen foods have occupied an important place on the menu of Brazilians, mainly from the middle and upper classes, and in greater concentration in regions where women's participation in the labor market is large. For these reasons, the Sudeste region registers a participation of about 49% of all consumption in the country.

According to a study by Kantar Worldpanel, on average 33 percent of Latin American consumers choose to consume frozen foods in their daily lives. Meanwhile, in Brazil, this is an option chosen by 61% of buyers, and with a growing trend for the coming years. This perspective is based on the increase in Brazilians' purchasing power, on new solutions and variety of products in the sector, in addition to the reduction in the cost of apportionment of equipment used in the heating of food. The study indicates that the country's urban consumption scenario will be driven by the upper middle class B, since it accounts for 42.9% of consumption. Next, the middle class (class C) moves 33.6% of consumption.