IMCD’s Food & Nutrition team is supporting manufacturers across Australia and New Zealand with technical ingredient solutions to meet the growing demand for healthier ready-to-eat meals.
In a competitive and fast-evolving food industry, ready-to-eat (RTE) meals have become a growing segment in Australia and New Zealand. Consumers are seeking convenient options that not only meet their busy schedules but also deliver on health, taste and sustainability.
The RTE segment has grown rapidly due to shifts in work and lifestyle patterns. Today, the market is shifting towards ready-made meals that are fresh, nutritionally balanced and offer a wide variety of options.
However, meeting these consumer expectations presents challenges for food manufacturers. As demand increases for meals with lower sodium, sugar and fat, as well as plant-based options, manufacturers are finding it difficult to deliver. At the same time, consumers are seeking high-quality meals that deliver on flavour and texture.
IMCD’s Food & Nutrition Business Group is at the forefront of this shift, offering formulation expertise and a robust portfolio of specialty ingredients to support manufacturers responding to modern consumer expectations.
IMCD is a global leader in the distribution and formulation of food ingredient. Amanda Shaffer, Business Unit Manager for Food and Nutrition in Australia and New Zealand, described the company’s role in supporting customers with functional and speciality ingredient solutions.
“Our products and offerings are designed to inspire and provide our customers with functional solutions to their product development or formulation challenges,” said Shaffer.
Having served IMCD in various technical and commercial roles across Australia and New Zealand for more than 13 years, Shaffer said awareness and access to nutrition information is only the beginning.
Shelf-life, simple ingredients, cheaper production
The challenges RTE manufacturers face include balancing nutrition with taste and texture, ensuring shelf-life stability, and meeting clean-label and regulatory standards, all in a cost-effective manner.
The rise of direct-to-consumer delivery models, where consumers order fresh meal kits online, is expanding rapidly in Australia.
“The RTE meal market is expanding at a great rate, particularly in Australia,” said Shaffer. “We’re seeing it heading more into the chilled fresh segment and a massive expansion in consumer-direct delivery.”
Valued at approximately $3 billion in 2024, the market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of around 7.5 per cent over the next five to 10 years. With the increasing number of chilled or frozen RTE meals, manufacturers seek to preserve freshness and quality for seven days or more. Shelf life must be stable enough to withstand transport and storage, while retaining both visual and nutritional appeal.
“Consumers want their RTE meals to have a ‘fresh from the pantry’ appeal, like they’ve made it themselves,” said Shaffer.
While many manufacturers can address this by adding artificial preservatives, consumers are also demanding simpler ingredient lists. This creates additional complexity for formulators aiming to meet clean-label requirements, as artificial stabilisers and preservatives cannot be used as freely.
Shaffer also pointed out cost challenges. Even when manufacturers find solutions for shelf life or artificial-free ingredients, scaling RTE meals in a cost-efficient manner remains a challenge.
“When cost pressures are on, processed and high-cost foods decline in demand,” she said.
As the RTE market continues to grow, IMCD is well placed to support the industry in developing clean-label, nutritious solutions that respond to evolving consumer preferences.
IMCD offers a comprehensive portfolio of specialty ingredient solutions designed to assist customers in reformulating and enhancing products through cost-effective and innovative approaches. This includes advanced salt reduction technologies, natural high-intensity sweeteners, and fat mimetic ingredients.
“All of those technologies combined with our application expertise allow us to help our customers produce better products,” Shaffer added.
The IMCD approach
By identifying consumer trends both locally and globally, IMCD Australia works with customers to develop food concepts that are a tailored solution by reformulating through modification, fortification or reduction.
“It starts with the customer,” she added. “What are they looking to do? What are the guidelines and criteria? From there, we help look through our extensive portfolio to identify potential solutions.”
Shaffer expanded on a recent case study that exemplified this approach.
IMCD Australia worked with an RTE meal manufacturer that wanted to improve the nutritional profile of one of its best-selling products.
The goal was to reduce sodium and fat while increasing protein, without impacting flavour or texture. Through a combination of plant-based proteins, natural flavours, and clean-label stabilisers, IMCD helped them achieve a 30 per cent sodium reduction and a 20 per cent protein increase.
The new formulation helped the manufacturer meet consumer expectations for healthier meals while maintaining product quality.
Shaffer described how the team is a key strength of IMCD. Unlike standard sales representatives, IMCD’s Food & Nutrition staff are trained technologists who understand the science behind formulation.
“Our sales team is made up of technically trained people with a wide range of experience in the food industry, creating solutions across different applications,” said Shaffer.
This technical expertise is paired with partnerships with market leading suppliers that deliver high-quality ingredients globally. These relationships give IMCD access to a broad portfolio of solutions, which can be tailored to each client’s unique formulation needs.
“IMCD Food & Nutrition is committed to solving customers’ formulation challenges and creating healthy, convenient and sustainable solutions that are customer trend-led and designed to exceed expectations while adapting to changing dietary trends, regulatory shifts, and economic pressures,” said Shaffer.
With the growing RTE category, companies that invest in smart ingredient choices will have a competitive advantage. By offering tailored support and a range of functional ingredients, IMCD can help overcome formulation challenges in the food and beverage manufacturing industry.