Strong demand forecast for ready-to-eat poultry packaging

As consumers continue to seek convenient, affordable meal options that require little or no preparation, often combining a precooked product with home-prepared side dishes, demand is in turn stimulated for a variety of packaging products such as domed plastic containers, trays, bags and foil containers.

In the US, roasted chicken and turkey are some of the most popular products in this segment, and a study by industry research firm Freedonia Group projects that in the US the demand for packaging for ready-to-eat poultry will climb 4.6% annually to $450 million in 2021.

The ready-to-eat market comprises packaging of prepared foods by foodservice operations of supermarkets, convenience stores, mass retailers and stores such as natural foods stores and club stores, and excludes precooked products from food manufacturers.

The report, Poultry Packaging Market in the US, forecasts that packaging demand in the ready-to-eat market will be boosted by the continuing popularity of store-made prepared foods in the retail segment. The largest share of demand in the ready-to-eat poultry packaging market will be held by plastic containers such as large domed containers for the packaging of rotisserie chicken and roasted turkey breast products.

Paper bags and folding cartons, usually with windowed portions, are also used in this segment for the packaging of fried chicken products, while plastic film and trays are used to package a wide range of ready-to-eat meals including prepared chicken breast products, and smaller portions of roasted and fried chicken.