Marketing Research Association to Host Online Seminar on July 9: The Future of the Ready-to-Eat Market and Product Development Tips

July 9, 2026: The Future of the Ready-to-Eat Market and Tips for Product Development

Driven by rising health consciousness and the need for convenience, the market for ready-to-eat meals, frozen foods, and retort foods continues to expand. However, many food manufacturers face significant challenges: 'How to create unique added value within established trends' and 'Where to find the signs of the next big hit.'

This seminar will decipher the continuously changing food consciousness and purchasing behavior of consumers utilizing diverse data. By cross-referencing 'actual purchasing behavior' from POS and receipt data with 'consumer interests and latent needs' from search data, it will explain market realities and future shifts that cannot be seen through retail sales data alone.

Furthermore, rather than simply introducing food trends, the seminar will analyze the background behind their emergence and future directions, conveying concretely how to apply them to your company's product planning, development, and client proposals. It will also introduce concepts on leveraging data and AI to improve the accuracy of planning and development.

Covering a broad range of categories including retort, pouch, freeze-dried, and confectionery, the seminar will examine the latest trends and future possibilities in the food industry. It is highly recommended for product planning and development staff, commercial sales representatives, and anyone looking to update their knowledge of the food market.

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Instructor: Kazuho Kodama Head of Food Future Research Lab, Nihon Shokken Holdings Co., Ltd.

Joined Nihon Shokken Holdings in 2000. Engaged in product development, marketing, and package design, and has worked in the in-house think tank, Food Future Research Lab, since 2013. By comprehensively analyzing various data on the overall food market and lifestyles, she clarifies consumer needs and their backgrounds, disseminating information that leads to product development and promotional planning.

Program:

1. The Food Market Under a Thrifty Mindset: Trends and Future Prospects of Dining Out, Home Meal Replacements, and Home Cooking

(1) Introduction to market reading data and persona creation using AI (2) 'Changes in food values' due to household and consumption shifts a. Changes in business formats and household structures: Population decline vs. increase in households, pressure on disposable income, increase in online purchasing b. Changes in food values: Rewards (challenging new menus, trend towards foreign cuisines) From three meals a day to snacking (quality and specialness of experience over frequency) From dining out to home meal replacements / from cooking to convenience (3) Can we read trends by looking at search data from country X? The next food trends coming to Japan (4) Specific search keywords seen across multifaceted segments: a. People axis (singles, families, elderly) b. Time axis (seasons, morning/noon/night, scenes) c. Weather axis (seasons, heat, weather)

2. Grasping the Overall Picture of Ready-to-Eat/Frozen Foods by Format and Product Development Points

(1) Current state of inter-format competition due to changes in shopping behavior (2) Sub-categories selling particularly well or moving slowly, cross-purchased categories, and changes in products/menus (3) Tips for menu proposal and product development: Persona analysis and hypothesis ideation with AI

3. From ID-POS (Supermarkets): Changes in Buying Patterns and Reasons from the Chain/Buyer Axis

(1) Points for maximizing ready-to-eat sales PI value and potential categories for supermarket home meal replacements (2) Tripling customer draw! Ready-to-eat/frozen food product strategies learned from famous examples (3) Product development points from word-of-mouth analysis (4) Balancing saving vs. luxury: 2 rice balls < 1 large sandwich

4. From Receipt Data (Convenience Stores): Current State and Future of the Ready-to-Eat/Frozen Food Market from the Consumer Axis

(1) Thorough comparison of the 3 major convenience stores. What are the challenges for each chain and categories to strengthen? (2) Current state and future of traditional categories like counter fast food, rice, noodles, desserts, and side dishes (3) Current state and future of emerging categories like top-seal, chilled rice, and frozen foods (4) Promotion points. Introduction of growing events

Event Overview:

Date & Time: Thursday, July 9, 2026, 13:00 - 16:00

Format: Online Seminar *Limited-time archive streaming available Tuition: 31,900 yen per person (tax included)

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Marketing Research Association

[Organizer]

Marketing Research Association Co., Ltd.

Since its establishment in 1960, the Marketing Research Association has been supporting the development of marketing-oriented talent and organizations, and building systems to consistently be chosen by customers. We provide support through various methods such as public seminars, in-house training, and consulting, focusing on four core areas: 'Marketing Support,' 'BtoC Sales Capability Enhancement,' 'Store Sales Capability Enhancement,' and 'BtoB Sales Capability Enhancement.'

The above seminar can also be conducted as an in-house training session. Please feel free to contact us.

Public Seminar (Online/In-person) Schedule https://www.marken.co.jp/seminar/

[Company Profile]

Marketing Research Association Co., Ltd.

COSMIC BLDG 2F, 1-2-8 Shibadaimon, Minato-ku, Tokyo 105-0012

Representative Director: Shingo Hirabayashi

Business Content: Education and training, marketing research, consulting, public seminars, planning and production

Established: 1962

https://www.marken.co.jp/