Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru®: Food Consumer Migration Is Accelerating

 

Consumers are dynamic—not static. As customer behaviors shift, so must retailers. This insight, championed by Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®, remains truer than ever. In a world transformed by hybrid work, streaming binge sessions, and on-the-go lifestyles, the Hand-Held, Ready-2-Eat, and Heat-N-Eat fresh-prepared grocerant category continues to flourish—projected to grow at a 6.24% CAGR from 2025 to 2032 globally. Meanwhile, the Ready Meals Market is on track to reach $276 billion by 2030, with a robust 8.9% CAGR through that year.

Why Portability Is Reshaping Retail Food Service

Portable, fresh meals are no longer a niche, they’re mainstream:

·       Retail Foot Traffic & Tech-Driven Experience
Grocery retailers like Whole Foods and Wegmans are winning by blending chef-crafted prepared foods with tech enhancements like AI-powered kiosks, app ordering, and predictive inventory systems. These innovations boost foot traffic by up to 20% while modernizing the in-store dining experience.

·       Value-Conscious Consumer Behavior
Grocerants have pivoted to offering value-driven meals that compete strongly with fast-food delivery. As inflation pressures linger, these affordable, freshly prepared options are hitting the sweet spot.

·       Meal Kits, Global Flavors & Health-Focused Options
The prepared-foods landscape is seeing surges in plant-based, low-carb, and global-flavor offerings, alongside sustainable packaging and “take-and-make” meal kits that appeal to health-conscious and ethnically diverse consumers alike.

·       Global Consumption Trends
U.S. consumers currently drive approximately $48 billion of ready-to-eat meal spending, while markets like China, India, and Japan are even more substantial—signaling both robust domestic demand and global growth opportunities.

 

The Evolving "65-Inch HDTV Syndrome"

Steven Johnson’s iconic "65-Inch HDTV Syndrome" metaphor perfectly captures the rise of at-home indulgence. Originally coined a decade ago, it described how consumers increasingly preferred to enjoy restaurant-quality food while watching on increasingly immersive screens.

Today, the trend is not only alive, it’s become routine:

·       Grocerant Meals in Nearly Every Home Meal
According to Foodservice Solutions®’ own Grocerant ScoreCards, 83.2% of meals served at home now include at least one Ready-2-Eat or Heat-N-Eat component.

·       Streaming + Food = The New Normal
The proliferation of large-screen TVs (75% of U.S. households have a TV 55″ or larger) and binge-watching behavior (60% of adults engage in marathon viewing sessions) drive demand for portable, high-quality prepared foods that can be easily enjoyed while streaming.

·       Screen-Driven Eating Habits Across Demographics
Even among younger demographics, screen use during meals is pervasive. In one study, over 85% of children and adolescents reported at least one eating occasion per day while using screens; some adolescents consumed up to 42% of their daily calories during screen time.

·       Frozen Foods Losing Ground to Fresh
This behavior shift has also contributed to the stagnation of frozen food sales: 57% of consumers say they avoid frozen meals because they prefer fresh alternatives—a clear win for grocerant-style options

 

Extending Your Innovation with Foodservice Solutions®

At the heart of Foodservice Solutions® is a powerful innovation framework: Build, Measure, Learn, Repeat. This cycle enables brands to validate new product ideas, snack formats, and prepared-meal offerings with data-driven iterations, ensuring relevance in today’s fast-moving retail foodscape.

Dedicated to vertical brand positioning, marketing, and business expansion, Foodservice Solutions® excels at uncovering and quantifying emerging grocery, convenience, or hybrid foodservice models.

And success leaves clues. When your brand integrates the Five P’s of Food Marketing—Product, Packaging, Placement, Portability, and Price—with precision, it plants the seeds for both top-line growth and bottom-line profitability, in an era built on convenient meal participation, differentiation, and individualization.

 

Looking Ahead

Want to stay ahead of the curve? Here are three powerful trend drivers to monitor:

1.       AI-Powered Personalization
Imagine apps that suggest grab-and-go bowls based on dietary preferences or past buying behavior—AI is transforming meal recommendations and retailer engagement.

2.       Health and Sustainability Demand
Consumers are gravitating toward plant-forward, clean-label, and locally sourced meals—and they’re increasingly responsive to eco-conscious packaging and ingredient claims.

3.       The Rise of Kitchen “Clouds” in Grocery
Retailers like Kroger and Walmart are experimenting with in-store kitchens and cloud kitchen models to deliver fresh, customizable meals at scale.

 

Next Steps

Ready to transform your food brand for today’s convenience-driven consumer?

·       Call us at 1-253-759-7869 to explore how the Five P’s can amplify your results—across full-service restaurants, convenience stores, or grocery delis.

·       Visit www.FoodserviceSolutions.us to see how our expertise can modernize your prepared food strategy.

·       Connect with Steven Johnson on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/grocerant/.

Let’s turn the “65-Inch HDTV Syndrome” into your growth engine—where entertainment meets convenience, and fresh meets profitability.