Blackwell Science, LtdOxford, UKIJCInternational Journal of Consumer Studies0309-3891Blackwell Publishing, 200327Original ArticleConsumer acceptance of chilled ready

mealsZ. Reed

et al.

Factors affecting consumer acceptance of chilled ready

meals on the island of Ireland
Zandra Reed, Heather McIlveen-Farley and Christopher Strugnell
School of Hospitality Tourism and Consumer Studies, University of Ulster at Jordanstown, Jordanstown, Co. Antrim, Northern Ireland, UK

growth areas in the UK market’.1 Several factors, nota-

Abstract
bly changing consumer trends and lifestyles, have con-
The chilled ready meal market on the island of Ireland is tributed to the development of ready meals.2 Often,
relatively young but is growing rapidly. This paper focused consumers want a meal to eat, or at most, assemble at
on a consumer questionnaire (n = 702), designed to examine home, rather than ingredients to prepare and cook, and
consumer attitudes to and consumption of chilled ready Kinsey et al.3 and Caraher et al.4 report on the de-
meals, in both the north and south of Ireland. This formed skilling, de-domestication and redundancy of traditional
part of a larger study, with the questionnaire findings con- cooking skills, despite the increasing exposure to and
tributing to an in-depth sensory study on a selected range apparent interest in food. However, in addition to sat-
of chilled ready meals. For a significant number of Irish isfying the convenience requirement, the sensory appeal
consumers, consumption of these products is higher than of products must not be forgotten as ‘if it doesn’t taste
on the UK mainland. For others, the products are purchased right, it will not be purchased’.5
as a convenient alternative or a weekly treat. Respondents The UK is one of the biggest consumers in Europe6
in urban locations were significantly more likely to consume with 62.5% of all households in Great Britain consum-
chilled ready meals, as were men and younger, single ing ready meals.7,8 In contrast, the chilled ready meal
respondents. Irish consumers are becoming more accus- market on the island of Ireland is much smaller but is
tomed to ethnic cuisine although traditional meals remain growing quite rapidly, currently estimated at around
popular. There is a clear need for developers to continue to one-third of that in the UK.9 Generally, consumer
enhance the sensory quality of these products, particularly expenditure on food in Northern Ireland and the
as the primary barrier to consumption was a preference for Republic of Ireland is higher than on the UK mainland
home cooked food. However, they must also strive to main- and consumers have different food purchasing habits,
tain consumer interest in the sector, fulfil the desire for spending more per week on bread and cereals, meat and
convenience and satisfy a more discerning palate. bacon, but less on fish, fruit and vegetables.10–12 This has
been attributed to differences in ‘prices, incomes, house-
Keywords Chilled ready meals, consumer acceptance. hold size and cultural eating habits’.13 Undoubtedly,
such regional trends will also impact on the purchase
and consumption of ready meals. It is worth noting,
Introduction
however, that although researchers have indicated a rel-
atively high penetration of these products, they have
The chilled ready meal market
also reported that frequent purchase and/or consump-
Convenience is now one of the most important and tion was much lower, with the majority of consumers
desirable attributes in a food product and has been classified as light users, serving the product once a
translated into a number of product categories, includ- month or less.7,8,14
ing ready prepared meals, described as ‘one of the few
The product range
Correspondence As regards product range, the chilled ready meal mar-
Chris Strugnell, School of Hospitality Tourism and Consumer Studies,
University of Ulster at Jordanstown, Shore Road, Jordanstown, Co. Antrim ket tends to be segmented by recipe origin and/or ingre-
BT37 0 QB, Northern Ireland, UK dient base. High levels of product development activity,

2 International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10 © 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

designed to stimulate consumer demand for more
authentic and adventurous meals, have led to the
growth of all market sectors. Several, newer varieties
have emerged, primarily in response to restaurant
trends. Nonetheless, Italian ready meal recipes continue
to significantly outperform the others, with lasagne out-
selling all other dishes.8,14 Bardsley7 and Mintel8,15 both
report that ready meal sales based on traditional British
recipes have grown, commanding approximately 20%
of all chilled ready meal sales by value. Willman6 rein-
forces this by stating that the biggest growth area is
actually in ‘non-ethnic’ dishes such as shepherd’s pie
and bangers and mash. This segment may have potential
in an Irish market often characterized by its conven-
tional and traditional eating habits. However, other new
product developments including luxury, premium prod-
uct ranges that are designed to compete with the restau-
rant and takeaway trade, cannot be ignored.
Clearly, new product success in today’s marketplace
is becoming increasingly difficult and is not helped by
the complexity of consumer choice and product accep-
tance. The food industry has a profound interest in the
food choices of consumers and would benefit from more
knowledge on how/why consumers select their prod-
uct(s). This however, can be a time consuming and dif-
ficult process that is not helped by fickle consumer
tastes and demands.
Methodology
This study sought to address the current lack of research
in the area. Market-based research and sensory analysis
techniques were combined to gain a more complete
understanding of the chilled ready meal market and
identify desirable product attributes that may help man-
ufacturers improve existing products or, indeed,
develop new ones. A qualitative approach was initially
used to gain a better understanding of the main issues
associated with the chilled ready meal market. This was
substantiated by quantitative methods (questionnaire
and sensory evaluation) that were subsequently vali-
dated with focus groups. An earlier paper detailed the
initial qualitative work, including retailer interviews,
store analysis and a series of consumer focus groups.16
This paper focuses on the main consumer questionnaire
that was subsequently developed to consider the chilled
© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
Z. Reed et al. • Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals
ready meal sector in both the north and south of Ireland
and, more specifically, to explore consumers’ attitudes
to, and choice and consumption of, chilled ready meals.
The study then continued with sensory evaluation work
that enabled the development of an optimum sensory
description and evaluation of consumer acceptability
for a selected range of chilled ready meals.
The questionnaire design was based on substantive
issues arising from the earlier qualitative investigation.
In addition, work by other researchers15,17–19 led to the
inclusion of certain questions. Section A investigated
consumers’ food choice decisions; section B sought to
gain an insight into consumers’ perceptions, consump-
tion patterns and attitudes to chilled ready meals; and
section C gathered demographic and socio-economic
details. After two small-scale trials, the questionnaire
was piloted with 110 consumers in both urban (Belfast,
n = 25; Dublin, n = 40) and rural (Enniskillen, n = 25;
Monaghan, n = 20) locations in the north and south of
Ireland respectively. Preliminary findings focused the
questionnaire considerably for the main study. It was
personally administered in 12 supermarket/shopping
centre locations in both the north (n = 8) and south
(n = 4) of Ireland. In total, 702 consumers completed
the questionnaires, of which 470 respondents (67%)
were in Northern Ireland with the remainder from the
Republic of Ireland. Responses were analysed using
SPSS for Windows v. 9.0, which enabled univariate and
bivariate analysis to take place. The chi-squared test was
used to test for significance.
Results and discussion
Chilled ready meal consumption
A larger proportion of women (82%) completed the
questionnaire, which reflected the profile of the main
food shopper on the island of Ireland and indeed, in the
UK. Age ranged from 18 to over 65 years and all socio-
economic groups were represented in the study. A total
of 56% respondents reported that they consumed
chilled ready meals, estimated to be slightly lower than
on the UK mainland with 62.5% of housewives serving
these meals in 1999.7,8 However, a significantly larger
number of respondents in Northern Ireland (61%)
reported consumption of the products, as compared
International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10 3
Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals • Z. Reed et al.
with 47% of respondents residing in the Republic of
Ireland (c21 = 12.5, P < 0.001). This would relate to ear-
lier suggestions that the chilled ready meal market may
be somewhat less developed in the Republic of Ireland,
as indicated by a substantial variation in the range and
availability of chilled ready meals. More retailer own-
label products were evident in Northern Ireland,
whereas national brand products tended to dominate
the chilled ready meal sector in the Republic. Retailers
in the Republic of Ireland have been somewhat slower
in introducing own-label chilled ready meals into the
market, again contributing to the more limited choice.
In addition, chilled ready meal products tend to be more
expensive in the Republic and mealtimes may also
remain more traditional.
In accordance with previous focus group findings, it
was noted that respondents who resided in urban loca-
tions were significantly more likely to consume chilled
ready meals once a week or more (c21 = 18.3, P < 0.001).
In contrast, the selection of chilled ready meals in rural
regions tended to be more limited. Poor availability of
the products coupled with the prevalence of more tra-
ditional eating habits, particularly in rural locations,
may assist in explaining these differences. Consumers
who reside in an urban location may be more experi-
mental and adventurous in their eating habits due to
increased choice and exposure to novel foods in both
the hospitality and retail sectors. The successful Irish
economy tends also to be more evident in urban loca-
tions, with greater disposable income and a desire to
spend money on convenience products such as chilled
ready meals. Furthermore, family sizes have tradition-
ally been larger in rural locations, which may be a fur-
ther reason for the lower popularity of ready meals.
Gender had a significant influence on chilled ready
meal consumption (c21 = 14.1, P < 0.001) with 71% of
male respondents reporting consumption of the product
as compared with 53% of female respondents. As
women remain primarily responsible for the prepara-
tion and cooking of the household’s food,20,21 they may
not depend on ready prepared convenience foods to the
same extent as men who are more likely to lack the
confidence and/or cooking skills to prepare meals from
scratch. Mintel8 reported that penetration of chilled
ready meals was higher among women than men, but
believed this related more to the grocery shopping
4 International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10
arrangements than to who actually consumed the prod-
uct. Therefore, although men were not buying the prod-
ucts a significantly larger percentage of men were
actually eating them.
Age had a significant influence on chilled ready meal
consumption (c21 = 28.9, P < 0.001) with younger
respondents, particularly in the 25–34 years age group,
significantly more likely to consume chilled ready meals.
This group may have higher disposable incomes, are
more widely travelled, and can afford to indulge in pre-
mium-priced products that appeal to their desire for
convenience. Griffiths22 also found that penetration of
the product increased significantly in the younger age
groups in which busy lifestyles mean that there is less
time to cook. Consumption by respondents of pension-
able age was shown to decline to 38%, which may relate
to a greater interest in and/or capability to prepare and
cook food or may be influenced by the cost factor.
Results indicated that marital status influenced
chilled ready meal consumption (c23 = 9.0, P < 0.05);
65% of single persons consumed chilled ready meals on
a regular basis in contrast with 55% of married/cohab-
iting couples, and it was noted that generally chilled
ready meal portion sizes were best suited for single
persons. In this study, contrary to previous research,8,14
single and two-person households reported a greater
consumption of chilled ready meals and consumption
was found to decline slightly in larger households,
but the relationship between household size and ready
meal consumption was not significant. However, a sig-
nificant increase in consumption was reported when
there were adolescent children in the household
(c23 = 8.1, P < 0.05). Previous studies23 have suggested
that young consumers become more independent in
their food choices when they enter adolescent years.
The chilled ready meal format can offer a variety of
recipes alongside the independence of eating something
different, often at alternative times to the main family
eating occasions, which may also appeal to the adoles-
cent consumer.
Educational level appeared to have a significant
impact on chilled ready meal consumption (c24 = 22.3,
P < 0.001). 64% of respondents who had completed
third-level education said they consumed chilled ready
meals. This was in contrast with those who had only
completed primary education where 42% claimed to eat
© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
 Z. Reed et al. • Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals

chilled ready meals. Socio-economic status would also Interestingly, only 17.3% purchased chilled ready
appear to have an effect (c25 = 17.5, P < 0.01), as meals because they viewed them as value for money,
although chilled ready meals appealed to respondents confirming a willingness to pay additional costs for the
in most social grades, the highest levels of consumption time saved in food preparation. The least popular rea-
were found in the ABC1 category. Unskilled, retired sons for purchasing chilled ready meals included the
and unemployed subjects, students and housewives desire to try a different cuisine (16.8%), as a treat
were significantly less likely to consume chilled ready (12.6%), the fact that they are healthy/nutritious
meals. (12.6%) and variety (0.3%).
Chilled ready meals are a fairly high penetration The profile of respondents who stated that they did
product as, out of the 56% respondents who reported not consume chilled ready meals is illustrated in Table 1.
consumption, 62% stated that they ate the products
once a week or more. A further 27% claimed to eat the Table 1 Profile of non-consumers of chilled ready meals
product two or three times per month and only 12%
were classified as light users (once a month or less). As Total no. (%) of
Bardsley7 noted, only 16.2% of UK housewives served questionnaire
Category respondents ‘Non-consumers’ (%)
ready meals more than once a week. It would appear
that for a significant number of consumers, frequent Sex
consumption of some of these products is considerably Male 126 (18) 29
higher on the island of Ireland than on the UK main- Female 576 (82) 47
land. For many other consumers, the products are pur- Age (years)
chased as a weekly treat, which is less expensive than 18–24 93 (13) 44
visiting a restaurant. Other reasons which may explain 25–34 153 (22) 28
35–44 165 (24) 41
a more regular consumption of the product may relate
45–54 141 (20) 50
to a decline in cooking skills, busy lifestyles and/or a 55–64 90 (13) 52
degree of novelty with these products as many are still 65+ 60 (8) 62
a relatively new introduction to the Irish market.
Marital status
Single 124 (18) 36
Married/cohabiting 513 (73) 45
Reasons for purchase and consumption
Separated/divorced 33 (5) 36
Not surprisingly, convenience (80.4%) was the predom- Widowed 32 (4) 63

inant motive for purchase of these products. Chilled Education

ready meals were also regarded by 40.5% respondents Primary 114 (16) 58
Secondary 365 (52) 44
as a suitable product for tea or lunch. Further important
Third 223 (32) 36
reasons were suitability for freezing (29.4%), as a
standby (27.9%) when time for food preparation was Socio-economic status
A 44 (6) 28
limited or for family members who ate at different times
B 81 (12) 36
and/or did not eat what the family would be eating C1 156 (22) 41
(26.4%). Many of these reasons indirectly relate to con- C2 156 (22) 41
venience, thus reaffirming its importance for consumers D 114 (16) 42
in Ireland, as in the UK. Over one-quarter of respon- E 151 (22) 57

dents (26.1%) stated that they bought chilled ready Location

meals because they or their family liked them. This Northern Ireland 470 (67) 39
Republic of Ireland 232 (33) 53
would indicate the relative importance of sensory fac-
Urban 563 (80) 40
tors such as taste, in selection decisions but there is still Rural 139 (20) 60
room for further improvements in sensory quality, also
confirmed in the latter (sensory) stages of this study. Total number of respondents (n) = 702.

© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10 5
Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals • Z. Reed et al.
In general, non-consumers of chilled ready meals
tended to be women, aged over 45 years, residing in a
rural location, and classified as belonging to a lower
socio-economic group. The primary reason identified by
these respondents was an expressed preference by 50%
for home-cooked food; 16% felt that the products were
too expensive and did not represent value for money,
and other reasons cited were that the products were
‘tasteless’, of ‘poor nutritional value’ and the ‘portion
size is too small’. This again suggests a need for further
development work on both sensory related aspects and
extrinsic product attributes.
Product preferences
Consumer preferences for a selection of chilled ready
meal cuisine types were measured on a five-point
hedonic scale, with an additional option for ‘never tried/
don’t know’. A Friedman two-way ANOVA revealed sig-
nificant differences in liking between the nine chilled
ready meal recipe types (c28 = 591.81, P < 0.001). A
significantly greater preference was found for Italian
cuisine than for all the other recipe types (P < 0.01).
Similarly, there was a significantly lower acceptance
score for other ethnic, fish and meat substitute dishes
than for each of the other seven recipe varieties
(P < 0.001).
The product that was purchased most frequently by
respondents, and identified as the favourite product,
was lasagne. The popularity of Italian food can perhaps
be attributed to a reasonably authentic, good quality
taste and reasonable price. Convenience was also cited,
as lasagne is a particularly time-consuming product to
prepare at home. Chinese dishes were more popular
here than Indian ready meals. This supports earlier
findings and is in contrast with Great Britain, where
Indian cuisine leads the ethnic chilled ready meal
market. In general, respondents cited convenience and
also believed that Chinese products were fairly authen-
tic in flavour, although the texture of vegetables tended
to cause some degree of disappointment. A very small
percentage of respondents (2%) in the lower socio-
economic groups, purchased a Chinese meal as a treat
because it was a cheaper alternative to visiting a restau-
rant or takeaway outlet.
Interestingly, although Indian dishes did not receive
6 International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10
a high score on the hedonic scale, they were mentioned
by respondents as their second most frequently pur-
chased cuisine type. In particular, chicken tikka masala
and chicken korma were highlighted, which would sup-
port Mintel’s8 findings. A primary reason for purchase
was the perception that they were more authentic in
flavour, as compared with a home made version and
that it would be very difficult to replicate such a meal
at home. The limited number of Indian restaurants in
Ireland, which tend also to be relatively expensive, may
also help explain this.
Despite the fact that consumers are becoming more
sophisticated in their eating habits, it would appear that
the ethnic chilled ready meal market in the island of
Ireland has not developed to the same extent as on the
UK mainland.24 Irish consumers are showing signs of
becoming somewhat more accustomed to ethnic cuisine,
largely due to the introduction of these products by
retailers rather than through cultivation of the hospital-
ity sector. However, traditional meals were purchased
most frequently by 14% of respondents with cottage pie
and shepherd’s pie identified as the favourites. These
were purchased either by older consumers or for male
consumers, again for convenience. In contrast, healthy
eating products were mentioned by only 1% as the
ready meal purchased most often. This was somewhat
surprising given the range available, but would suggest
the relatively lower status attributed to health as com-
pared with convenience.
Recipe types that were disliked included fish, meat
substitute dishes, American/Mexican dishes and Thai
products. Only 4% stated that they purchased Mexican
products most frequently. These low figures may relate
to a relatively recent market entry, where consumers in
Ireland have not become accustomed to them. Retailers
may need to encourage trials and build familiarity but
it is worth noting that on the UK mainland, where
Mexican and Thai food are fairly well established in the
hospitality sector, consumption of these products in
chilled ready meal format still tends to be low.8 Consum-
ers may perceive the products to be more suitable for
restaurant meals and there may be lessons to be learned
by product developers, in translating restaurant style
cuisine into mass-produced ready meals.
Mean hedonic scores for overall liking for these rec-
ipe types are presented in Table 2 and illustrate differ-
© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd
 Z. Reed et al. • Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals

Table 2 Consumer preferences for chilled ready meal cuisine types (mean scores and ANOVA)

Cuisine type

Category No. Italian Traditional Chinese Indian Mexican/USA Healthy eating Vegetable Other ethnic Fish/meat

Location
Northern Ireland 287 3.56 2.52 2.97 2.37 2.09 2.96 2.48 1.14 1.29
Republic of Ireland 109 3.02 1.87 3.05 2.42 1.98 2.09 2.36 0.15 0.35
Mann–Whitney U-test (z) 2.17 2.65 1.01 0.34 0.55 3.70 0.32 5.85 5.18
Significance 0.030 0.008 0.311 0.737 0.582 0.000 0.749 0.000 0.000

Gender
Male 90 3.81 3.08 3.33 2.79 2.44 2.08 2.27 1.00 1.39
Female 306 3.30 2.13 2.89 2.27 1.95 2.91 2.50 0.83 0.92
Mann–Whitney U-test (z) 2.18 4.33 1.85 2.39 1.88 3.64 0.93 1.33 2.14
Significance 0.030 0.000 0.064 0.017 0.060 0.000 0.353 0.185 0.032

Age (years)
18–24 52 3.56 2.40 3.56 2.21 2.44 2.62 2.23 0.83 1.44
25–34 110 3.62 2.48 3.15 2.92 2.63 2.73 2.09 1.19 0.94
35–44 98 3.20 2.12 3.19 2.70 2.23 2.85 2.46 0.74 0.89
45–54 70 3.49 2.11 2.93 2.01 1.74 2.63 2.53 0.84 1.07
55–64 43 3.23 2.34 2.09 1.55 0.82 2.73 3.14 0.52 0.98
65+ 23 3.17 3.17 1.96 1.67 1.13 2.67 3.04 0.71 1.08
Kruskal–Wallis H-test (c 25) 6.90 8.19 17.29 20.96 32.25 1.30 13.44 8.25 4.27
Significance 0.270 0.146 0.004 0.001 0.000 0.935 0.020 0.143 0.511

Social class
A 31 2.94 1.10 3.06 2.55 2.74 2.45 2.19 0.81 0.29
B 51 3.41 2.45 2.51 2.57 2.10 2.59 2.37 1.39 1.43
C1 92 3.50 2.15 3.32 2.51 2.02 3.02 2.63 0.68 0.71
C2 92 3.41 2.23 3.27 2.64 2.31 2.62 2.18 0.87 1.21
D 65 3.76 3.03 3.27 2.59 2.22 2.68 2.43 0.89 1.06
E 65 3.21 2.64 2.23 1.51 1.24 2.70 2.79 0.74 1.09
Kruskal–Wallis H-test (c 25) 3.86 23.20 15.64 13.32 14.34 3.21 5.29 5.67 13.46
Significance 0.570 0.000 0.008 0.021 0.014 0.667 0.382 0.339 0.019

Overall mean 3.41 2.34 2.99 2.39 2.06 2.72 2.45 0.87 1.03

Hedonic scale rated from 5 (like extremely) to 1 (dislike extremely).

Most preferred products in bold; least preferred underlined.

ences with regard to location, gender, age and socio-
economic grouping. Overall, consumers in Northern
Ireland rated all cuisine types more highly than their
counterparts in the Republic of Ireland. A Mann–
Whitney U-test for significance established that con-
sumers in Northern Ireland showed a significantly
stronger preference for Italian products (P < 0.05). In
addition, healthy eating, traditional and fish dishes were
also significantly preferred by consumers residing in
Northern Ireland (P < 0.01). This relationship may how-
ever, have been linked more closely to the availability
and accessibility of the various chilled ready meal cui-
sines, rather than to any major differences in preference
between the two cultures.
Gender appeared to influence consumer preferences
for three out of the nine cuisine types. Men preferred
Italian (z = 2.2, P < 0.05) and traditional products
(z = 4.3, P < 0.001), which would suggest a more conser-
vative choice. Women, on the other hand, gave healthy
eating dishes a higher mean score for preference

© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10 7
Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals • Z. Reed et al.
(z = 3.6, P < 0.001), which might be expected. As
regards age, a Kruskal–Wallis test for significance
revealed that Chinese, Indian, Mexican and American
foods were significantly more preferred by younger con-
sumers, perhaps reflecting their more adventurous eat-
ing habits (P < 0.01), whereas respondents aged over
55 years reported a strong dislike for these types of
products. Older consumers gave a higher preference
score for vegetable-based and traditional products.
Italian cuisine was liked by all respondents, especially
those under 34 years.
Professional consumers had a significantly lower pref-
erence for traditional products compared with all other
socio-economic groups (P < 0.01). In addition, C1 and
C2 consumers showed a lower preference for traditional
products compared with unskilled consumers (D)
(P < 0.05). All groups gave Chinese dishes a fairly high
score, indicating its wider penetration.
In general, the quality of chilled ready meals was
deemed acceptable with 68% of respondents reporting
satisfaction. Over half (53%) thought that the variety
and choice of chilled ready meals on the marketplace
was sufficient. Interestingly, there were no significant
differences between the north and south of Ireland,
even though the availability of certain types of ready
meals in the Republic of Ireland tended to be more
limited. In total, 66% respondents reported that they
were satisfied with the price but, as earlier findings
would suggest, portion sizes were often a cause of dis-
content. No significant relationships were found
between satisfaction levels and demographic, socio-
economic and cultural factors (P > 0.05).
Attitudes to chilled ready meals
Respondents’ attitudes to a range of statements regard-
ing chilled ready meals were measured on a Likert scale
ranging from ‘strongly agree’ to ‘strongly disagree’. As
convenience was cited as the primary reason for pur-
chasing a chilled ready meal, it was not surprising that
nearly all the respondents (99.2%) agreed with the
statement that ‘chilled ready meals are convenient’.
A very high percentage (73%) claimed they bought
chilled meals to put in the freezer, further highlighting
the convenience and versatility of these products. The
perceived higher quality of chilled ready meals, in com-
8 International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10
parison with some of the frozen alternatives, has per-
haps encouraged consumers to purchase these products
for freezing at home.
Over half of the respondents (53.9%) considered
chilled ready meals to have authentic flavours. How-
ever, quite a high proportion (30.8%) were undecided,
which may suggest varying levels of satisfaction,
depending on the product, and may also highlight an
area for further work, although greater authenticity
will not always lead to increased customer satisfaction.
Despite the fact that chilled ready meals are convenient
and are often perceived as being of higher quality than
their frozen counterparts, they were perceived by 81.2%
respondents as inferior in taste in comparison to home-
cooked meals. This confirms the difficulty of replicating
the taste and flavour of home (freshly) cooked food,
in chilled ready meal format. Demographic, socio-
economic and cultural factors were not shown to signif-
icantly influence the response to this statement
(P > 0.05), but consumers on lower incomes were
slightly more prepared to compromise on taste and
other sensory factors. Again the need for further work
on sensory quality and consumer acceptance of chilled
ready meal products is highlighted. In total, 77% stated
that the taste of a chilled ready meal was more impor-
tant than price and highlights that the sensory appeal of
products should not be underestimated.
In total, 66.7% respondents reported that price influ-
enced product selection, although it was of lesser impor-
tance than taste. However, only 44% agreed with the
statement that ‘chilled ready meals are not that expen-
sive’, indicating some degree of discontent with the per-
ceived value for money. Gender had an influence on
respondents’ attitudes (c22 = 9.9, P < 0.01); more women
perceived the products as being expensive. Men were
undecided, perhaps because they were not the main
food shoppers and/or were uncertain about the price of
the products. Urban consumers were significantly more
likely to agree that ‘chilled ready meals are not that
expensive’, in contrast with rural respondents (c22 = 9.8,
P < 0.01). There were mixed reactions to the statement
that ‘photography on the packaging is realistic’; 40%
agreed with this statement but 37% disagreed, believing
that it was often deceptive, and 52% agreed that ‘por-
tion sizes are just right’, with a significantly larger num-
ber of men (49%) disagreeing with the statement, as
© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd

might be expected. Single portion sizes were preferred
by over half the respondents (53%) with only 9% stat-
ing a preference for family packs.
Conclusions
As Bogue and Delahunty25 note, ‘an important function
of marketing is to understand present and future cus-
tomer needs and use this information to develop prod-
ucts that contain an optimum combination of attributes
desired by the customer’. Clearly the Irish market was
underdeveloped before the entry of the UK food retail-
ers. It would appear, however, that the chilled ready
meal market, particularly in Northern Ireland, has
grown at a considerably faster rate, within a very short
space of time. This research revealed that 56% consum-
ers on the island of Ireland consumed chilled ready
meals, which was lower than on the UK mainland. How-
ever, penetration of the product was higher, with the
products currently being eaten once a week or more.
Despite extensive product development in the area
with the introduction of novel cuisines (Caribbean and
Japanese), there appears to be a core group of mature
products that has a sustained level of popularity and has
been retained, with minor product adaptations, whereas
the newer, and arguably more innovative, lines tend to
have a much shorter life span. New product developers
must not neglect these ‘generic’ products in their devel-
opment activities, to ensure they continue to meet con-
sumer demands. New recipe launches are also required
to maintain consumer interest in the sector and satisfy
a more discerning palate. However, these products may
have a considerably shorter lifecycle. Although Ireland,
particularly the urban areas, is becoming more cosmo-
politan in outlook, it does not yet have the diversity of
cultures evident across the UK mainland. Thus, ethnic
restaurants have not penetrated to the same extent and
the implication is that retailers may have to work harder
to sell their ethnic products to consumers.
In general, consumers in Ireland remain conservative
in their food choices. For all products, however, market-
ing managers and product developers alike have crucial
roles to play in defining the chilled ready meal product
attributes that are desired by consumers. Alongside this,
it is important to recognize the clear need for sustained
development work to continue to enhance the sensory
© 2003 Blackwell Publishing Ltd International Journal of Consumer Studies, 27, 1, January 2003, pp2–10
Z. Reed et al. • Consumer acceptance of chilled ready meals
quality of these products. This is an important consider-
ation for future development activity because the pri-
mary barrier to consumption was a preference for
home-cooked food and traditional eating habits and,
unless products have the desired sensory appeal, the
likelihood is that they will not be purchased on a regular
basis. The impetus is on manufacturers to continue to
work on this aspect, combining an optimum sensory
profile with the desired convenience.
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