Now, all these years later, the concept is still a topic on the convention's workshop program indicating that it's a marketing concept that's here to stay and which could easily work not only for supermarkets but also for farmstands.
You have probably noticed that some time ago supermarkets began offering more prepared foods, usually near the front of the store or the deli. Offerings often include rotisserie chicken, side dishes, pasta dishes, salad bars, and pre-made sandwiches. Sometimes foods are kept warm or can be quickly heated in the microwave oven.
Meal Solutions aren't just limited to fully prepared foods, but can be defined by several levels of consumer involvement in the meal:
- Ready-to-eat: convenient meals for immediate consumption, usually prepared food.
- Ready-to-heat: partially or fully prepared meals requiring heating for later consumption.
- Ready-to-prepare: meal requires assembly but minimal planning, purchase and preparation.
- Ready-to-create: refers to retailer programs designed to build consumer cooking interest and capability.
Focus groups conducted by FMI around the country identified six needs related to meals that encompass nutrition, family time, holiday and social gatherings, cultural traditions, and indulging in favorite foods as a reward. Recognizing these needs can help food retailers develop Meal Solutions products to meet these needs and thereby increase sales.
Local turkey farms were onto this idea a long time ago. For as long as I can remember, at Thanksgiving time turkey farms have offered fully cooked turkeys with all the fixings - stuffing, gravy, potatoes, squash, and cranberry sauce - for folks who wanted a fresh, home-cooked turkey dinner but didn't have the time or ability to cook it themselves.
A quick check of some local farmstand websites shows that fruit and vegetable farm marketers have also picked up on this marketing niche either intuitively or by studying marketing trends.
Berlin Orchards in Berlin, Mass., suggests on their website, "If you've had a busy day, pick up a home cooked 'dinner-to-go' such as our famous chicken pot pie."
Green River Farms in Williamstown, Mass., not only sells fresh produce, dairy products, cheeses and pasta, but also tells customers that "You can also look forward to an expanded selection of salads, soups and entrees prepared in-store for you to conveniently pick up on your way home for dinner, or on your lunch break from work, or any time!"
Bolton Orchards in Bolton, Mass., offers a large selection of prepared foods including appetizers, entrees and desserts, including sandwiches made to order, homemade soups, stews, chowders and chilies, dinner entrees, side dishes, salads and desserts, and party platters.
Offering fully prepared foods may not be right for every farmstand. You'll need the equipment, ability, packaging and personnel to do the preparation, or if you buy-in, you'll at least need the proper equipment to keep them hot or cold. Perhaps the ready-to-prepare or ready-to-create categories would work better.
The Meals Solutions concept can be as simple as displaying together items that can make up a meal, along with a recipe or two. That way, harried customers don't need to think about putting a meal together. All they have to do is grab and buy the items you've put together, and go.
If customers know that they can not only pick up fresh ingredients for a salad or dessert, but the entire dinner as well, without having to make an extra trip to the grocery store, that gives them all the more reason to stop by your farmstand on the way home from work.
Copyright 2005 by Diane Baedeker Petit
This article originally appeared in the May 2005 issue of Growing magazine.
