
The world is getting older. By 2030, one in six folks on this planet might be aged 60 years or over and by 2050 the proportion of the world’s inhabitants over 60 years outdated might be 22%, almost double its 2015 ranges, in response to the World Well being Group (WHO).
Our lives are formed by age by means of altering physiologies and habits, so naturally by means of the years the wants and needs of shoppers change, too.
One space that probably affords low-hanging fruit for the meals trade because it develops and markets merchandise for the ageing inhabitants is prepared meals. Because the age of the final inhabitants has elevated, so, too, has demand for prepared meals. in response to knowledge from Simply Meals‘s dad or mum firm GlobalData.
Within the UK this yr, the amount of prepared meals consumed might be 603.8 million kgs, up considerably from 505.93 kg a decade earlier. By way of worth, gross sales are forecast to succeed in £5bn ($6.77bn) in 2025, up from £3.2bn in 2015. GlobalData expects that development to proceed. In 2029, it forecasts volumes consumed to be 628m kgs, equal to £5.8bn in worth.
So, how are client preferences prone to evolve within the coming a long time and is the meals trade prepared and keen to adapt?
Cyrille Filott, international strategist for client meals, packaging and logistics at Dutch financial-services group Rabobank, units out the enterprise case. “The success of prepared meals comes on the again of households getting smaller, busier life and comfort for the patron,” he says.
Shoppers aged 60-plus maintain explicit promise for ready-meal producers, Filott provides. “For this group, there are two alternatives: Sheer quantity of this a part of the inhabitants, and worth, when it comes to the components or composition of the meals and the channel, whether or not retail, catering, foodservice or supply.”
Are older shoppers engaged sufficient about diet?
The 60-plus age cohort affords fertile floor for specialised, focused merchandise. Speaking to Simply Meals, Myriam Snaet, head of market intelligence and client insights at components producer Beneo, factors to a number of the issues and physiological traits distinctive to the demographic. “Ageing shoppers have distinct dietary wants as a result of physiological modifications and age-related points. Shoppers aged 55 and over have particular well being issues: wholesome ageing tops the checklist (44%), adopted by bone or joint well being (39%), coronary heart well being (38%), weight administration (37%) and digestive/intestine well being (33%).”
However, Snaet provides, regardless of the wants of the 60-plus phase, its members do a foul job searching for out the suitable meals merchandise. “Child Boomers have larger physiological wants for health-supporting components as a result of age-related situations, however they present decrease engagement. Our analysis demonstrates that youthful generations are higher knowledgeable and extra well being conscious than different generations: 57% of Gen Z hunt down data on diet and wholesome consuming versus simply 35% for Child Boomers, whereas 61% of Gen Z analysis meals, drinks and components that may assist increase their well being, in comparison with 40% of Child Boomers,” she explains.
“This highlights a transparent generational disparity in proactive well being and diet engagement, notably between Gen Z and Child Boomers. The figures point out that Boomers could also be much less inclined to analysis themselves on wholesome diet and might need much less publicity to fashionable wellness developments or useful components.”
Everyone seems to be aware of what makes a nutritious diet however we don’t replace our decisions as we get older
Lorena Savani, EIT Meals
On the EU-funded analysis organisation EIT Meals, Begoña Pérez Villareal and Lorena Savani are working to enhance diet and consuming habits in Europe. Savani says in some circumstances older shoppers should not buying the meals merchandise which can be of their finest curiosity. “Shopper behaviour is a matter. Everyone seems to be aware of what makes a nutritious diet however we don’t replace our decisions as we get older. It’s solely when we’ve got a well being subject that we truly change our behaviour and decisions,” she says.
Is the meals trade doing sufficient?
However, Pérez contends, it’s the meals trade that’s failing to ship the suitable merchandise to ageing populations. “I believe meals trade remains to be not satisfied that there’s a clear alternative right here. There’s not a transparent technique… However ignorance will not be a legitimate excuse because the trade could be very reactive to and centred in direction of youthful shoppers,” she says.
A stroll across the grocery store could be an illustrative expertise, Pérez provides. “Whenever you go to a grocery store you could find the nook for younger shoppers and kids and the remainder is all collectively. There’s not a lot segmenting within the supply for older shoppers. It’s one thing that the market will not be distinguishing nicely.”
Filott identifies the identical drawback however sympathises extra with marketeers. “We see that the majority firms, particularly retailers, don’t play into the worth alternative. It’s tough to cater to older shoppers as a result of who desires to be confronted that they’re 60-plus? Nonetheless including sure ingredient and advertising and marketing the content material of the meal is a chance,” he says.
It’s tough to cater to older shoppers as a result of who desires to be confronted that they’re 60-plus?
Cyrille Filott, Rabobank
Regardless of the chance, there’s a monetary incentive to deal with youthful shoppers, says Hamish Renton, CEO of UK-based food and drinks consultancy HRA World. “When you seize a Gen Z client along with your model, you’re going to get 60 years of buy loyalty, however when you seize somebody who’s 65 or 70 years outdated, in actuality you’re going to get fewer years of buy loyalty. From an buyer acquisition perspective, you’re higher off specializing in the younger shoppers.”
That mentioned, the phase could be higher reached with nicely tailor-made merchandise, focused advertising and marketing and applicable distribution channels. Renton factors to upmarket UK grocers Waitrose and Marks & Spencer as retailers adapting extra shortly to the calls for of the 60-plus phase for his or her engaging prepared meal choices, and specialist on-line companies for wine, cheese and seafood which were in a position to buck the sample of on-line purchasing reducing with age.
For Savani, offering nicely focused, nutritious prepared meals is an pressing matter. “We want nutrient dense and minimally processed meals to be marketed higher: accessible, with clear labelling and with portion sizes for folks in any respect levels of life.”
She provides prepared meals have a job to play in sustenance. “They’re a necessity as a result of very busy life folks lead. Prepared meals can and have to be handy and wholesome.”
On the charity AgeUK, Head of Well being Influencing Lesley Carter says the comfort issue of prepared meals can have a drastically constructive influence for aged members of the ageing client cohort. “There are some individuals who can’t prepare dinner another method, so it’s a constructive factor… We’re very sociable after we eat however, in case your life has began to return in a bit, your urge for food and need to eat deteriorate. Prepared meals are actually good. When you prepare meals which have extra protein in, that’s a very value efficient to get good diet.”
However nonetheless, extra could be completed, Carter says, to supply clearly marketed, specialised merchandise for the distinctive attributes of the ageing client cohort. “They should promote for precisely what it’s. A soft-to-eat meal, an easy-to-chew-and-swallow meal, a high-protein meal. In the event that they had been clear who a meal is for, that will be actually useful. For instance, for individuals who can’t chew it’s one vary, for others who want excessive calorie it’s this different vary.”

The world is getting older. By 2030, one in six folks on this planet might be aged 60 years or over and by 2050 the proportion of the world’s inhabitants over 60 years outdated might be 22%, almost double its 2015 ranges, in response to the World Well being Group (WHO).
Our lives are formed by age by means of altering physiologies and habits, so naturally by means of the years the wants and needs of shoppers change, too.
One space that probably affords low-hanging fruit for the meals trade because it develops and markets merchandise for the ageing inhabitants is prepared meals. Because the age of the final inhabitants has elevated, so, too, has demand for prepared meals. in response to knowledge from Simply Meals‘s dad or mum firm GlobalData.
Within the UK this yr, the amount of prepared meals consumed might be 603.8 million kgs, up considerably from 505.93 kg a decade earlier. By way of worth, gross sales are forecast to succeed in £5bn ($6.77bn) in 2025, up from £3.2bn in 2015. GlobalData expects that development to proceed. In 2029, it forecasts volumes consumed to be 628m kgs, equal to £5.8bn in worth.
So, how are client preferences prone to evolve within the coming a long time and is the meals trade prepared and keen to adapt?
Cyrille Filott, international strategist for client meals, packaging and logistics at Dutch financial-services group Rabobank, units out the enterprise case. “The success of prepared meals comes on the again of households getting smaller, busier life and comfort for the patron,” he says.
Shoppers aged 60-plus maintain explicit promise for ready-meal producers, Filott provides. “For this group, there are two alternatives: Sheer quantity of this a part of the inhabitants, and worth, when it comes to the components or composition of the meals and the channel, whether or not retail, catering, foodservice or supply.”
Are older shoppers engaged sufficient about diet?
The 60-plus age cohort affords fertile floor for specialised, focused merchandise. Speaking to Simply Meals, Myriam Snaet, head of market intelligence and client insights at components producer Beneo, factors to a number of the issues and physiological traits distinctive to the demographic. “Ageing shoppers have distinct dietary wants as a result of physiological modifications and age-related points. Shoppers aged 55 and over have particular well being issues: wholesome ageing tops the checklist (44%), adopted by bone or joint well being (39%), coronary heart well being (38%), weight administration (37%) and digestive/intestine well being (33%).”
However, Snaet provides, regardless of the wants of the 60-plus phase, its members do a foul job searching for out the suitable meals merchandise. “Child Boomers have larger physiological wants for health-supporting components as a result of age-related situations, however they present decrease engagement. Our analysis demonstrates that youthful generations are higher knowledgeable and extra well being conscious than different generations: 57% of Gen Z hunt down data on diet and wholesome consuming versus simply 35% for Child Boomers, whereas 61% of Gen Z analysis meals, drinks and components that may assist increase their well being, in comparison with 40% of Child Boomers,” she explains.
“This highlights a transparent generational disparity in proactive well being and diet engagement, notably between Gen Z and Child Boomers. The figures point out that Boomers could also be much less inclined to analysis themselves on wholesome diet and might need much less publicity to fashionable wellness developments or useful components.”
Everyone seems to be aware of what makes a nutritious diet however we don’t replace our decisions as we get older
Lorena Savani, EIT Meals
On the EU-funded analysis organisation EIT Meals, Begoña Pérez Villareal and Lorena Savani are working to enhance diet and consuming habits in Europe. Savani says in some circumstances older shoppers should not buying the meals merchandise which can be of their finest curiosity. “Shopper behaviour is a matter. Everyone seems to be aware of what makes a nutritious diet however we don’t replace our decisions as we get older. It’s solely when we’ve got a well being subject that we truly change our behaviour and decisions,” she says.
Is the meals trade doing sufficient?
However, Pérez contends, it’s the meals trade that’s failing to ship the suitable merchandise to ageing populations. “I believe meals trade remains to be not satisfied that there’s a clear alternative right here. There’s not a transparent technique… However ignorance will not be a legitimate excuse because the trade could be very reactive to and centred in direction of youthful shoppers,” she says.
A stroll across the grocery store could be an illustrative expertise, Pérez provides. “Whenever you go to a grocery store you could find the nook for younger shoppers and kids and the remainder is all collectively. There’s not a lot segmenting within the supply for older shoppers. It’s one thing that the market will not be distinguishing nicely.”
Filott identifies the identical drawback however sympathises extra with marketeers. “We see that the majority firms, particularly retailers, don’t play into the worth alternative. It’s tough to cater to older shoppers as a result of who desires to be confronted that they’re 60-plus? Nonetheless including sure ingredient and advertising and marketing the content material of the meal is a chance,” he says.
It’s tough to cater to older shoppers as a result of who desires to be confronted that they’re 60-plus?
Cyrille Filott, Rabobank
Regardless of the chance, there’s a monetary incentive to deal with youthful shoppers, says Hamish Renton, CEO of UK-based food and drinks consultancy HRA World. “When you seize a Gen Z client along with your model, you’re going to get 60 years of buy loyalty, however when you seize somebody who’s 65 or 70 years outdated, in actuality you’re going to get fewer years of buy loyalty. From an buyer acquisition perspective, you’re higher off specializing in the younger shoppers.”
That mentioned, the phase could be higher reached with nicely tailor-made merchandise, focused advertising and marketing and applicable distribution channels. Renton factors to upmarket UK grocers Waitrose and Marks & Spencer as retailers adapting extra shortly to the calls for of the 60-plus phase for his or her engaging prepared meal choices, and specialist on-line companies for wine, cheese and seafood which were in a position to buck the sample of on-line purchasing reducing with age.
For Savani, offering nicely focused, nutritious prepared meals is an pressing matter. “We want nutrient dense and minimally processed meals to be marketed higher: accessible, with clear labelling and with portion sizes for folks in any respect levels of life.”
She provides prepared meals have a job to play in sustenance. “They’re a necessity as a result of very busy life folks lead. Prepared meals can and have to be handy and wholesome.”
On the charity AgeUK, Head of Well being Influencing Lesley Carter says the comfort issue of prepared meals can have a drastically constructive influence for aged members of the ageing client cohort. “There are some individuals who can’t prepare dinner another method, so it’s a constructive factor… We’re very sociable after we eat however, in case your life has began to return in a bit, your urge for food and need to eat deteriorate. Prepared meals are actually good. When you prepare meals which have extra protein in, that’s a very value efficient to get good diet.”
However nonetheless, extra could be completed, Carter says, to supply clearly marketed, specialised merchandise for the distinctive attributes of the ageing client cohort. “They should promote for precisely what it’s. A soft-to-eat meal, an easy-to-chew-and-swallow meal, a high-protein meal. In the event that they had been clear who a meal is for, that will be actually useful. For instance, for individuals who can’t chew it’s one vary, for others who want excessive calorie it’s this different vary.”