July 13, 2015
A fresh approach designed to boost frozen sales
Through a special arrangement, presented here for discussion is a summary of a current article from Frozen & Refrigerated Buyer magazine.
Giant Eagle is creating a "healthy aisle" at the start of the frozen department.
Leading it off, under "Fresh Frozen Produce" signage, will be frozen fruits and vegetables. Next, six to 12 doors of natural and organic items, organized by day part, and then a couple of doors of gluten-free frozen. When you add in a selection of frozen vegetarian items, you’ve got a destination set of 30 to 35 doors of better-for-you frozens.
Some might shrug this off as nothing new, but there are subtleties here with far-reaching implications. And the timing — considering today’s boom in fresh produce and better-for-you foods — is perfect.
So let’s start with the "Fresh Frozen Produce" signage. It is still all-too-rare to see the words "fresh" and "frozen" juxtaposed. It imparts an important message to the consumer: frozen can be fresh.
That point was underscored for years by the "5-A-Day for Better Health" program, urging people to eat five servings of fruits and veggies daily. Yes, the program put most of its efforts against fresh produce, but eventually word got out to a critical mass of shoppers that frozen veggies are indeed "fresher" than fresh.
Photos: Frozen & Refrigerated Buyer
With that level of acceptance already there, it makes perfect sense to put fresh frozen produce first in line to draw shoppers down the aisle. Hopefully, the halo effect of the segment can slowly spread to the rest of the frozen food department.
That will depend, of course, on whether manufacturers produce the truly healthy frozen foods that meet what consumers want. Or, more precisely, whether retailers will choose to stock them. There are plenty of good, healthy frozens being marketed, most often by small and mid-size manufacturers. But there’s also plenty of slotting and street money from the big boys who still dominate the shelves.
Frozen foods still carry the stigma of "unhealthy." Yes, we’ve done it to ourselves over the years with freezer burn from inadequate cases and slow product rotation, too much processing, BOGOs and the race to the bottom. So we need to get distrustful shoppers down the aisle again. We’ve got better freezer cases, arguably better rotation, and better foods now at least available from manufacturers. And for my money, Giant Eagle has it right.
BrainTrust
Paula Rosenblum
Co-founder, RSR Research
Recent Discussions
Discussion Questions
Can a better-for-you message elevate the frozen department? Will a “frozen can be fresh” message click with consumers?
Poll
All I can say is it has already clicked with me. There’s an argument that freezing it right out of the ground, rather than sending it across country in refrigerated trucks, keeps more vitamins and minerals intact. It makes sense, actually.
I think “Fresh frozen, organic, non-GMO” will work for people. It sounds (oddly) second best to “local.”
I think this is a great idea. Healthy frozen is not only something of interest to consumers but it also will give a feeling of being understood (so many people want to eat healthier and are always looking for ways to both eat healthy and not spend too much time and money on a single meal).
This is not a warm and reassuring message from the frozen food membership. Taking the fresh produce suppliers head on was a poor decision that may lose ground, as in market share and sales. And ease of use with little preparation announcement(s) may be a more palatable approach.
This is something I practice for myself at home and I think it will appeal to the younger, single, Millennial generation living in big cities. I don’t know how many times I have purchased a head of broccoli or a bunch of cilantro where it would rot in the refrigerator untouched. If I had been more educated about the benefit of buying frozen, I would’ve done it years ago. Perhaps this is an opportunity for the retailers to pull the consumers in this direction.
“Fresh Frozen” was the original selling point for the category once we got past meats and before TV dinners. It is the selling point Frozen should use—if it can be credible. Some “wowee-zowee” technology fluff advertising might click with today’s “have no idea where food really comes from” Millennials. (Who are not to be confused with the real “foodie” segment of the Millennials who start up many of today’s small sustainable farming operations. I have a lot of respect for those young people and wouldn’t want to appear to denigrate them.)
Yes, absolutely! Frozen foods are super convenient. With more of the population migrating to faster paced lives, if you want to cook at home, frozen veggies is a great option. I sometimes feel guilty getting frozen over fresh, but if there is something there to put my mind at ease, I will probably walk through this aisle a lot more.
Having just recently spent a year representing AFFI and the Frozen Food Roundtable’s efforts to promote frozen—and an “it’s healthier than you think” story as part of the campaign to change perceptions—I applaud Giant Eagle for recognizing there is a legitimate argument to be made, but one that needs to be supported by retailers across all key touchpoints, in-aisle most critically.
In a test done with Big Y back in Q3 2014, we demonstrated that an extended, consistent, fully integrated campaign to promote the positive aspects of frozen foods (convenient, economical, tasty, healthy) can influence shopper behaviors and effect turnaround through the entire frozen department. The nutritional argument for frozen vs fresh veggies is a great entry point into the conversation, but it’s up to the manufacturers and retailers to make a committed and extended case for exciting, healthy choices THROUGHOUT the frozen food section.
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All I can say is it has already clicked with me. There’s an argument that freezing it right out of the ground, rather than sending it across country in refrigerated trucks, keeps more vitamins and minerals intact. It makes sense, actually.
I think “Fresh frozen, organic, non-GMO” will work for people. It sounds (oddly) second best to “local.”
I think this is a great idea. Healthy frozen is not only something of interest to consumers but it also will give a feeling of being understood (so many people want to eat healthier and are always looking for ways to both eat healthy and not spend too much time and money on a single meal).
This is not a warm and reassuring message from the frozen food membership. Taking the fresh produce suppliers head on was a poor decision that may lose ground, as in market share and sales. And ease of use with little preparation announcement(s) may be a more palatable approach.
This is something I practice for myself at home and I think it will appeal to the younger, single, Millennial generation living in big cities. I don’t know how many times I have purchased a head of broccoli or a bunch of cilantro where it would rot in the refrigerator untouched. If I had been more educated about the benefit of buying frozen, I would’ve done it years ago. Perhaps this is an opportunity for the retailers to pull the consumers in this direction.
“Fresh Frozen” was the original selling point for the category once we got past meats and before TV dinners. It is the selling point Frozen should use—if it can be credible. Some “wowee-zowee” technology fluff advertising might click with today’s “have no idea where food really comes from” Millennials. (Who are not to be confused with the real “foodie” segment of the Millennials who start up many of today’s small sustainable farming operations. I have a lot of respect for those young people and wouldn’t want to appear to denigrate them.)
Yes, absolutely! Frozen foods are super convenient. With more of the population migrating to faster paced lives, if you want to cook at home, frozen veggies is a great option. I sometimes feel guilty getting frozen over fresh, but if there is something there to put my mind at ease, I will probably walk through this aisle a lot more.
Having just recently spent a year representing AFFI and the Frozen Food Roundtable’s efforts to promote frozen—and an “it’s healthier than you think” story as part of the campaign to change perceptions—I applaud Giant Eagle for recognizing there is a legitimate argument to be made, but one that needs to be supported by retailers across all key touchpoints, in-aisle most critically.
In a test done with Big Y back in Q3 2014, we demonstrated that an extended, consistent, fully integrated campaign to promote the positive aspects of frozen foods (convenient, economical, tasty, healthy) can influence shopper behaviors and effect turnaround through the entire frozen department. The nutritional argument for frozen vs fresh veggies is a great entry point into the conversation, but it’s up to the manufacturers and retailers to make a committed and extended case for exciting, healthy choices THROUGHOUT the frozen food section.