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Frozen pizza sales down, suffers 'processed food stereotype,' research says

Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, has published a report on the frozen pizza industry, the "Pizza Market in the U.S.: Foodservice and Retail, 2nd Edition."

February 2, 2015

Packaged Facts, a division of MarketResearch.com, has published a report on the frozen pizza industry, the "Pizza Market in the U.S.: Foodservice and Retail, 2nd Edition."

The market research company says that a problem with the industry is that it suffers from a processed food stereotype in the face of health and "real food" trends. From 2010-2014 the percentage of households eating frozen pizza within the past 30 days has dropped, as has the percentage of those eating 10+ pizzas a month, by 15 percent, the company said. Additionally, umbers have dropped for the industry's core demographic: those living in a household with an income under $25,000, married households with children living on less than $50,000 and Hispanics, according to the report. Higher quality food and the convenience offered by delivery are also attributed to the decline in sales.

The report examined the 30 highest-growth frozen pizza brands and revealed that the most successful are 'strongly associated' with restaurant brands or quality and one-third align their product with health and wellness.

"The reality that these themes are finding a growing audience suggests that frozen pizza can gain traction by fighting fire with fire," said Packaged Facts Research Director David Sprinkle in  a company press release. "Frozen pizza manufacturers can combat attrition through healthier product positioning. Marketers such as Annie's Inc. and Amy's challenge the notion that frozen pizza has to be heavily processed."

"Pizza Market in the U.S.: Foodservice and Retail, 2nd Edition" key research:

• Places pizza consumption trends within the context of other food trends.   
• Assesses pizza menu trends and innovation.   
• Assesses retail pizza choice influencers, trends household pizza and pizza brand use over time, and discusses new product innovation related to foodservice brands at retail and healthy/lifestyle diet pizza.
• Analyses pizza usage channel distribution, identifying consumer usage penetration and preferences among eight pizza procurement sources/types.
• Presents and discusses frozen pizza sales and product trends.
• Analyzes six leading pizza restaurant chains.
• Sizes and segments the market, providing an all-channel market size and forecast for retail pizza sales.