With more opportunities to eat at home due to the corona crisis, demand for frozen foods that can be easily cooked is growing, and retailers are increasing the number of products they handle and strengthening sales.
At stores in Saitama Prefecture, a supermarket that operates mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area, the food section was renovated this spring and the number of frozen food products handled was increased from 500 to 800.
At this supermarket, the sales of frozen food last year increased by about 10% compared to 2019 before the spread of the new corona infection, and this year is also on the rise, so other stores will gradually expand the frozen food sales space. We plan to expand.
Kenichi Takashima, deputy manager of the Beisia Food Center Kawashima Inter store, said, "In addition to the resurgence of infection, there is a need for people not to cook elaborate meals at home due to the heat wave, so we would like to continue to strengthen sales." .
In addition, Lawson, a major convenience store, has increased the number of frozen food sales floors since last year at about 5,000 stores, which is one-third of its domestic stores, and has started selling new sashimi and desserts.
According to the Japan Frozen Food Association, which is made up of frozen food manufacturers, the production volume of home-use frozen food last year reached a record high of over 798,000 tons. surpassed.
As the demand for eating at home increases due to the corona sickness, the movement to strengthen sales of frozen foods among retailers is likely to spread further.