Who will win the top spot for home meal delivery? Between meal kit delivery services and online grocery shopping, there are already many options for consumers to choose from in the direct-to-consumer food market. However, with Amazon’s recent purchase of Whole Foods, the acquisition may have many established businesses scrambling after their attempt to reinvent the wheel.

Current Competition:

Meal Kit Delivery

Within the last two years, the home meal delivery industry has seen profitable success. Today’s competitors in the meal kit delivery sector include big names like Blue Apron, Hello Fresh, Plated,
Purple Carrot and Terra’s Kitchen. Preaching convenience, fresh ingredients and a variety of simple recipes, the industry has really taken off. Some companies are winning purchases over with the use of organics ingredients. Consumers have welcomed these boxes of fresh foods onto their doorsteps, with sales reaching close to $800 million in 2016. In fact, research shows meal delivery is projected to reach $10 billion globally by 2020 and one in four adults in the U.S. has purchased a meal kit and 70% are return customers, according to an article entitled, Organic Produce to Your Door, by the Organic Produce Network.

Online Grocery Shopping

Large chain grocery stores have been delivering groceries to consumers for quite a while now. Amazon jumped on the opportunity to deliver food products with Amazon Prime and AmazonFresh. Walmart Grocery offers consumers to order groceries with same day pickup. According to a recent article by Food Service Director, What an Amazon-Whole Foods Combo Could Mean for Foodservice, “57% of U.S. consumers ate a supermarket-prepared meal at home in early 2016…[and]…the sale of supermarket meals consumed at home [was] $26.5 billion.”

NatureSeal: Shelf Life Extension of Fresh Produce

It is exciting to see new trends emerge from the food industry. Convenience continues to be a key motivator for each sector of the industry. NatureSeal has been providing convenience in fresh produce for over two decades and remains an important part of presenting fresh ingredients to consumers. Our revolutionary products began with a vitamin and mineral blend to keep apples from browning and has grown into a line of products for foodservice and consumers . From fresh apple slices at McDonald’s, to fresh cut produce in the supermarkets, to NatureSeal for Home Use, our line of shelf extension technology has continually provided fresh cut solutions to the produce industry. The direct-to-consumer market can benefit greatly too! Send prepared fresh produce in meal kits or deliver fresh cut produce from the grocery store without the worry of browning and absolutely no change in the natural flavor of the fruit or vegetables. Reduce waste on fresh, perishable ingredients at in-store restaurants too! No matter what part of the produce industry, NatureSeal proves that fresh is simple.

Have you tried at home meal delivery services? Please comment below.