What you need to know
Retail sales of Chinese, Indian and Mexican food enjoyed sustained growth over 2009-12, but this halted in 2013. The sharp decline seen in 2014 continued in 2015, when sales fell by a further 7% to an estimated £1.32 billion. The strong performance of the accompaniments segment was not enough to offset the drop experienced by ready meals and cooking sauces.
The long-established cuisines already enjoy broad usage, leaving little scope to convert new users or secure new occasions. They are also under pressure from the less well-established cuisines, while dining out and scratch cooking are also putting pressure on the market.
While growth potential remains limited for Chinese and Indian food, there is strong interest in emerging cuisines. Not knowing what to expect remains a barrier for consumers to explore new ethnic cuisines, putting the onus on operators to provide guidance and increase familiarity. Consumer interest in ethnic spice and meal kits points to a means for brands to tap into the current scratch cooking trend, while addressing uncertainty about how to prepare ethnic foods.
Products covered in this report
This report examines the UK retail market for world food. For the purpose of this report, world foods are defined as beyond European and North American foods.
Please note that the terms ethnic food and world cuisines are used interchangeably in this report.
The market size covers the following types of cuisines:
Chinese food – includes Peking, Cantonese and other Chinese variations
Indian food
Mexican food.
The following food categories are covered in the market size:
Ready meals – ambient, chilled and frozen ready meals which require heating and those which require cooking. This also includes meal kits, chilled and ambient, which contain ingredients for specific ethnic dishes.
Cooking sauces – wet sauces (including pour-over and stir-fry) and dry sauces that are added to vegetables, meat or fish, in jars, tins or sachets/pouches.
Table sauces – sauces that tend to be used after cooking, eg chilli sauce, soy sauce.
Seasonings – include curry powder, spice mixes and fajita mixes etc.
Accompaniments – samosas, bhajis, Chinese crackers, chutneys, poppadums, dips (including guacamole), stir-fry bases and breads (including chapattis, tortillas). Rice/noodles are excluded from the market size, unless part of a ready meal/meal kit.
Sales data for Thai ready meals is also provided in the report, though not included in the overall market size.
Specifically excluded from the market size are:
Sales through restaurants and takeaways.
Part-prepared or ready-to-cook marinated meat and fish that use flavourings from the ethnic food market.
Rice and noodles (unless part of a ready meal/meal kit), instant savoury noodle and rice snack products (eg Pot Noodle).
Nacho/tortilla-style chips (unless part of a ready meal) because they are primarily sold and marketed as salty snacks rather than Mexican food.
Fresh vegetables such as chillies.
Kidney beans.
Pre-prepared filled wraps; bakery wraps sold in morning goods. Tortillas are included.
Salads, sandwiches or soups described as ‘in the style of’ or ‘inspired by’ particular cuisines, such as ‘Moroccan-spiced soup’ or ‘chicken burrito salad’.
Other ethnic cuisines such as Korean, Vietnamese, Malaysian, African, Middle Eastern and South American are excluded from the market size, although these are discussed as a competitive influence where relevant.
European and North American foods.
Please note that as a result of updated market information Mintel has adjusted the market size data against the previous report.
