Making Healthier Food Choices The Norm

FAST FOOD VS. FROZEN, HOME-COOKED MEALS

Faisal Al Majali

Managing Partner - Delektia

Over the last few decades, there’s been a rapid decline in home cooking across the globe and a concurrent increase in dependence on convenience foods. The rise of dual income families is one major reason for this. More women now work within the labour force compared with 19801 and there has been a 40% reduction2 in home cooking hours during the same time. (World bank database, The Guardian). This demographic shift has catalyzed the growing dependence on readyto-eat (fast food) and pre-cooked meals (frozen products). Just like fast food, most pre-cooked frozen food products available in the market are heavily processed and lack nutritious value. Companies producing these meals are focused on commercialized options such as junk food, their offerings use preservatives, and offer sub-par flavour at best. Most fast food and pre-cooked frozen food products essentially do nothing more for a consumer besides fill them up with calories. Over the years, these food choices have given rise to a plethora of lifestyle-related health issues such as obesity, depression, digestive problems, heart disease, stroke, and many others. Because of this, it’s been observed that an increasing number of people are actively looking for better alternatives to home cooking - options that are fast but do not compromise on their health and well-being. Frozen home-authentic cooked meals are the answer to this problem. And as consumers broaden their awareness regarding health and wellness, there is a concurrent increase in demand this specific category of frozen food. Due to this growing demand, people’s freezers are getting larger. Within this segment, there are companies that are laser-focused on creating homeauthentic frozen ready-to-heat-and-eat options that combine speed and wellness and offer the best of both worlds to their customers. So, let's compare the nutritional value and effects of convenience food with frozen home-cooked meals to see how they stack up.

Fast food & pre-cooked frozen foods vs. frozen home-cooked meals: A comparison

1. Frozen home-cooked meals contain fewer calories

New research from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health shows that eating home-cooked meals decreases calorie intake compared to eating fast food. People who prepare their own meals or consume frozen home-cooked meals eat fewer carbohydrates, lipids, and sugars than those who cook less frequently. The survey also found that persons who typically eat six to seven home-cooked meals per week consume less food when dining out. Additionally, they choose fresh food with a good nutritional value over oily fast foods when they eat out. Fast food and most pre-cooked frozen products have almost no nutritional value when compared to frozen home-cooked meals since they contain more salt, artificial flavours, and almost zero fiber. What’s more, people easily consume thousands of calories per meal when they indulge in fast food or frozen products such as pastas and pizzas. But while most of these foods are unhealthy, with the advent of the latest technology such as blast and isochoric freezing, it doesn’t have to be that way. Food can easily be preserved without chemicals (such as preservatives) and kept as fresh as new.

2. Frozen home-cooked food is more affordable and wholesome

Compared to the cost of eating out, consuming frozen, homecooked meals prepared at home is less expensive. We spend significantly more when we eat out (especially if done frequently). Additionally, frozen home-cooked meals show their nutritious value on the packet (including calories per meal) and are healthier than takeout or meals from a restaurant that generally do not disclose the quality of the ingredients, or their quantities used per meal. One fast food meal for a family of four can cost around KWD 6.75 to KWD 8.5. On the other hand, a frozen home-cooked meal of meatball tomato stew for a family of four costs less. Frozen homemade meals of lobieh vegan (long green beans with fresh tomatoes, onions, and garlic) and other vegetarian dishes such as Musakaa Vegan (eggplant, zucchini, and chickpeas) will cost even less. Moreover, these frozen home-cooked options offer homeauthentic meals that are nutritious, free of preservatives, and have superior flavour and texture. The use of blast freezing technology helps preserve the goodness (vitamins and nutrients) of these freshly cooked wholesome meals.

3. Cooked-at-home meals reduce childhood obesity

Eating meals prepared at home with the family fosters closer relationships and improves interpersonal communication. It also maintains the physical and emotional well-being of kids. Eating meals together as a family reduces childhood obesity, according to a study that was published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. For families that lack the time to cook at home, frozen homecooked meals offer a healthier and smarter alternative. These frozen meals also show calories on each pack of meal for those who want to lose weight and make their portion sizes smaller. Each pack of frozen home-cooked meal will have anywhere from 107 to 317 calories per serving. Now compare this with the 800 or 1200 calories consumers eat when consuming a deep fried or heavily processed meal and its shocking to see the sheer number of additional calories a person is consuming per day when relying entirely on takeaways. Additionally, consuming food made with fresh produce can aid in healing, prevent inflammation, and keep lifestyle diseases at bay. Frozen home cooked meals also allow customers to stock up on healthier, home-authentic meals for up to one year without a loss of nutritive value. Another benefit of eating “home authentic frozen food” is that it reduces overall food wastage which happens at various points between grocery shopping, throwing away of unused grocery (such as fresh produce that is still fit for consumption), or uneaten cooked food. On average, about 4 people waste approximately half a ton of food every year. The world food wastage is almost 1 billion Tons compared to 5.3 billions Tons of food available for consumption. This makes food wastage almost 20% of total food available per year. Additionally, 10% of CO2 emissions globally come from food wastage, which is a serious global challenge. (National Centre for Biotechnology Information)

Parting thoughts

Frozen home-cooked meals are both more affordable and healthier when compared with fast food and pre-cooked frozen meals. They don't overdo it on the calories, fats, flavorings, and salts that are bad for health. And they can significantly enhance users’ health and well-being. According to Statista, Kuwait’s online food delivery segment will reach US$748.70m in 2022 with an expected annual growth rate of 3.88% (CAGR 2022-2027). By 2027, there will be 1.7 million people using online meal delivery services. This indicates a continuously growing reliance on pre-cooked meals and highlights great opportunities for brands with heart to make way into the healthy, home-cooked category.