ABSTRACT
A great variety of chilled and frozen foods is currently available to the consumer. Raw, partially cooked, as well as ready-to-eat options are generally perceived to be “fresh” and “healthy” alternatives to an increasing group of consumers who are unable or unwilling to cook full meals from scratch, particularly after a busy
day at work. For most people, chilling and freezing are conventional and familiar preservation methods as many have some experience cooling or freezing food at home and the procedures are not seen to change food products considerably. Lowtemperature storage has grown to be one of the major preservation techniques associated to high-quality foods. Frozen foods account for one of the biggest sectors in the food industry. According to data reported by the British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF 2007), the frozen food market (retail and foodservice) accounted for a total value of 87.5 million pounds in 2006 with the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom as the three top-consuming countries, in both volume and value. In the United Kingdom, the retail frozen food market showed an annual value growth of 1.7% for the year ending in March 2007, the value of total retail frozen foods for the period amounting to just under 4.5 million pounds (BFFF 2007). For consumers, frozen foods represent a practical and straightforward manner to have access to ready-meals or food ingredients at short notice, providing a year-round supply of seasonal produce. The chilled food market has evolved consistently over the last decades and is still a major growing category of foods (Dennis and Stringer 2000). The sector offers continuing opportunities for new as well as improved products in order to keep up with consumer demand for fresh and convenient foods. Not surprisingly, recent growth has been largely in the areas of healthy eating and added-value products (Dennis and Stringer 2000).
