Middle East & Africa Frozen Food Market Outlook, 2027

The improvement of innovative items, for example, low fat, low cholesterol, whole wheat and artificial additives, is relied upon to invigorate the MEA frozen food market. The development of the frozen food industry in the Middle East and Africa is driven by the developing interest for advantageous and prepared-to-eat items because of the occupied way of life and changes in dietary patterns. Interest for prepared to-pack and simple-to-cook items will increase during the gauge time frame, reinforcing the frozen food market in the Middle East and Africa. Interest for functional food is one of the fundamental drivers of the frozen food market in the territory. Since these foods spare customers cooking, arrangement and cleaning and time exertion. Frozen foods are presently at the forefront of general stores and hypermarkets. The frozen food market in the Middle East and Africa have been developing with the rising interest for frozen pizzas and versatile breakfast, which are situated as easy items and flourish in quality and newness. Food inclines in cafés and other food stores additionally lead the market extension.

The report titled “The Middle East & Africa Frozen Food Market Outlook, 2027” gives an all-round performance analysis of varied frozen food segments in the Middle Eastern & African region. Both the regions combined have shown a growth in the adaption of frozen food products at a rate of above 5% CAGR historically. The development in the Middle East's frozen food market is driven by its different buyer bunches which have a craving for a variety of fresh food. Central eastern nations like Kuwait, the UAE, and Qatar are the absolute busiest countries, where there is a marked consumer preference to consume ready-to-eat items. The African frozen food market has is at the blooming stage in the growth of frozen food products. However, the adaption has been quite progressive in the last couple of years with growing consumer demand for convenience food.

The development of the Middle East & Africa frozen food market is driven by the rising interest of the convenient and on the go frozen ready to eat items. Adaption of frozen food products is still at the growing stage in these regions due to a lack of awareness and low penetration in the region. However frozen food products are gaining popularity, especially in the Middle-Eastern region due to lack of agro-based products and arable land. The middle-Eastern region has the highest presence of frozen meat and potato products whereas frozen fish & seafood posing prominence in the African region. Further, the frozen food trend in Africa has been observed as comparatively low as compared to Middle Eastern countries. This has been due to several underdeveloped and small middle-class countries like Nigeria, Ethiopia, and Kenya, etc. in the African region.

Backed by increasing number of time-poor consumers coupled with development of healthy snacking options in the market, the frozen snacks market is progressively paving its way in overall snack industry of the region. Companies such as Grand Mills Bakeries owned by Agthia, are offering frozen bakeries products including baguettes, with the firm claiming the use of most modern frozen bakery technology in the GCC.

In addition to that, convenience is the key factor driving the growth of ready-to-cook meat consumption in the region, with improving lifestyle and a rise in the number of working women. According to the World Bank Data, South Africa accounts for the largest share of women working in the country that is 45% in 2019, followed by UAE and Saudi Arabia at 17.5% and 15.8%, respectively. Although the share of working women in Middle Eastern countries is relatively low, the population is continuously rising over the years, which is expected to drive convenience foods market including frozen snacks. Further due to the technological innovations in the food industry, the range of convenience food has expanded to frozen, portion-controlled, shelf-stable, microwave-able, and others. Ready-to-cook meat products has slowly emerged as one of the fastest growing segments in the packaged and produced food market, owing to increasing purchasing power and urbanization.

In the overall Middle East and Africa, Saudi Arabia along with Egypt dominated the Middle East and Africa frozen food market revenues owing to the growing population together with rapid urbanization. Additionally, growing consumer preference for low trans-fat and high nutritional value products would spur the demand for frozen food in the Middle East and African market. The Middle East & Africa Food Frozen Market is anticipated to witness substantial growth in the coming years on the back of the growth of restaurants, hotels & resorts. Additionally, the freezing process slows down chemical presence which tends to prevent the human body from harmful chemical intake and is estimated to benefit the profound growth of the frozen food market. Further, rising awareness about less wastage of food backed by rise in the replacements of frozen food over fresh food which is considered to be an imperishable food is expected to instigate the adoption for frozen food and would spur the profound growth of the Middle East & Africa frozen food market in the coming time frame.

Moreover, the frozen food market is growing due to the consumer’s interest in frozen pizza and versatile breakfast. The rising interest in convenience and on-the-go frozen ready-to-eat items has increased the adoption of frozen food products in MEA. Further, adopting efficient strategy to procure frozen food to ensure cost effectiveness from imported products is anticipated to fuel the market growth during the forecast period. In addition, the innovation or improvement in frozen food items such as peas, pizza, sausages, plain chicken, and other frozen food products containing low fat, low cholesterol, whole wheat, and artificial additives will propel the demand in this region.

Covid-19 Impacts:

The frozen food industry has seen steady growth since COVID-19 began, as people gravitate towards foods with longer shelf lives. Both large and small manufacturers saw increased sales last year, but changes in packaging and distribution methods have benefitted larger corporations. However, change in consumer behavior regarding to higher adoption of healthy supplements has positively impacted the market growth during the forecast period.

Major companies present in the market

General Mills Inc., Kraft Heinz Company, Ajinomoto Co. Inc, Cargill Incorporation, Nestle S.A., Kerry Group, Grupo Bimbo S.A.B. De C.V, Mccain Foods Limited, Tyson Foods, Inc., Kellogg Company, JBS S.A, Rich Product Corporation, Al Kabeer Group

Considered for the report:

• Geography: Middle East & Africa
• Historic year: 2016
• Base year: 2021
• Estimated year: 2022
• Forecasted year: 2027

Aspects covered in this report

• Middle East & Africa frozen foods market with its value and forecast along with its segments
• Country-wise frozen foods market analysis
• Various divers and challenges
• Ongoing trends and developments
• Five force models
• Top profiled companies
• Strategic recommendation

Countries covered in the report

• UAE
• Saudi Arabia
• Israel
• South Africa

By Product Type

• Frozen potato
• Frozen fruits & vegetable
• Frozen ready meal
• Frozen meat & poultry
• Frozen fish & seafood

By End User

• Commercial
• Residential

By Sales Channel

• Supermarket /modern retail/ hypermarket
• Independent Retailers / Departmental /convenience store
• On-line Shop

The approach of the report:

This report consists of a combined approach of primary as well as secondary research. Initially, secondary research was used to get an understanding of the market and listing out the companies that are present in the market. The secondary research consists of third party sources such as press releases, annual report of companies, analyzing the government generated reports and databases. After gathering, the data from secondary sources primary research was conducted by making telephonic interviews with the leading players about how the market is functioning and then conducted trade calls with dealers and distributors of the market. Post this we have started doing primary calls to consumers by equally segmenting consumers in regional aspects, tier aspects, age group, and gender. Once we have primary data with us we have started verifying the details obtained from secondary sources.

Intended audience

This report can be useful to Industry consultants, manufacturers, suppliers, associations & organizations related to the frozen food products industry, government bodies, and other stakeholders to align their market-centric strategies. In addition to marketing & presentations, it will also increase competitive knowledge about the industry.