Frozen food phenomenon: A semiotic lens
Supermarkets are on a mission to overhaul negativity around frozen being poor quality. In 2017, Iceland stated that they were, “looking to lead a revolution in how we talk about frozen food”, and with this we’ve seen a flurry of NPD within the sector, giving it an exciting new look far from the frozen roast dinners of times gone by. The category now holds a complex image that embodies a multiplicity of packaging codes. In this article, we apply a semiotic lens to the category to explore the new face of frozen.
Frozen reborn
When it comes to grocery shopping in the UK fresh used to prevail, as it was seen as the best choice for nutrition and health. Frozen on the other hand, has traditionally held a negative stigma, being seen as cheap, low quality and synonymous with discount stores such as Farmfoods, conjuring up an image of defrosted prawn cocktails from 70s dinner parties. However, this reputation is changing and frozen food has recently had something of a revival in the UK. After three years of stagnation and decline, the frozen food category has risen from the FMCG ashes to become this year’s best performing category within food and drink*. And with its sparkling performance, the products within the segment are changing how they communicate on shelf, bringing excitement, more confidence, emotion and practicality into the design of its packaging.
The frozen food of today is very much catering to three of the biggest consumer trends in food: convenience, health, and sustainability. Today people have more flexible ways of working, which means traditional meal times are changing. This has opened up an opportunity for retailers and brands to provide a no-hassle reliable meal. According to the Grocer, “average cooking times have come down in 19 of the past 20 years”. Step in frozen food. Frozen is delivering to the needs of many who are looking to create a quick meal that will sustain, delight the palate and be healthy too. Frozen also comes hand-in-hand with minimising food waste and saving your pennies. Factors, which resonate considerably with many people who are tightening their purse strings in the wake of Brexit and those who are conscious about cutting down their food waste.
Read the rest of the article here: https://www.illumestories.com/2018/08/frozen-food-phenomenon-a-semiotic-lens/

