- Contents
- *Overview
- What you need to know
- Key issues covered in this Report
- Definition
- COVID-19: Market context
- Economic and other assumptions
What you need to know
While meal kits have seen ups and downs since the first services started to appear around 2012, the COVID-19 pandemic has provided the industry with a boost, as consumers have focused on home cooking and looked to limit grocery shopping trips. This increase in consumer demand has given meal kit services a unique opportunity to reinvent themselves around the experiences, convenience, and value they provide.
Key issues covered in this Report
The impact of COVID-19 on consumer behavior and the meal kit market.
Value perceptions that meal kit services must address to maintain momentum beyond the pandemic.
Key meal kit consumer mindsets and demographics.
Barriers to use and opportunities for continued growth.
Definition
This Report covers meal kits that provide all the ingredients needed for a meal, including pre-portioned fresh foods and preparation instructions. Included are kits available online via subscription or individual sale and kits sold in-store.
Excluded are fully prepared meals and shelf-stable kits that require the addition of separate fresh ingredients.
COVID-19: Market context
The first COVID-19 case was confirmed in the US in January 2020. On March 11, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global health pandemic, and on March 13, President Trump declared a national emergency in the US.
Across the US, state-level stay-at-home orders rolled out throughout the months of March and April, remaining in place through May, and in some cases June. During this time, referred to as lockdown, nonessential businesses and school districts across the nation closed or shifted to remote operations.
During re-emergence, all 50 states have relaxed stay-at-home orders and allowed businesses to operate with varying levels of social distancing measures in place. The continued spread of COVID-19 infections has driven some states to slow down or reverse course on reopening plans. Mintel anticipates the US will remain in a state of flux through 2021, until a vaccine is available.
Economic and other assumptions
This Report and the segment forecasts within assume that:
Unemployment will average 11.5% in 2020 before incrementally improving over the next five years to reach 6.2% in 2025, per Congressional Budget Office projections from May 2020.
US GDP will decline 5.1% in 2020 and increase 4.8% in 2021, followed by continuous increases of 4-5% through 2030, per CBO’s July 2020 projections.
PCE will return to pre-pandemic levels in 2021 and will steadily increase at a rate of 2-3% annually through 2030, per CBO’s July 2020 projections.
The non-institutional civilian population aged 16+ and the number of US households (total occupied housing units) will both grow from 2020 to 2030, but at rates of less than 1% annually, per CBO’s July 2020 projections.
