HomeBake 425/:30 is Kraft Heinz’s latest foray into frozen entrees, side and veggie meal solutions

09-May-2023 - Last updated on 09-May-2023 at 12:36 GMT

Source: Kraft Heinz

Kraft Heinz’s recently launched HomeBake 425/:30 enters the frozen convenience category while playing to rising nostalgia for comfort foods like chicken parmesan, homestyle mac & cheese and cheesy broccoli.

The company told FoodNavigator-USA that its HomeBake 425/:30 line is “a family-friendly, mix-and-match collection of frozen entrée, side and veggie dishes made with quality ingredients."

Homebake uses proprietary roasting pan technology designed to roast and bake at 425 degrees in 30 minutes without meal prep or skill. Each pan is recyclable, offering minimal clean up for consumers, according to the Kraft Heinz team.

“Unlike traditional mains, veggies and sides that are sold in separate parts of the grocery store and require individualized preparation, HOMEBAKE 425/:30 is sold on the same shelf in the freezer aisle for one-stop shopping that makes meal planning easier than ever before,” explained the Kraft-Heinz team.

Capturing the time and cost-conscious consumer

Consumer behavior data commissioned by the company showed that 61% of American shoppers prefer a homecooked dinner, while a third of these consumers are dissatisfied with the end result— “that’s over 3.7 billion homecooked dinners a year missing the mark,” the company cited.

With its line of traditional comfort foods, the company is focused on capturing busy consumers who can benefit from Homebake’s 500-plus menu combinations via 15-base products of entrees and side dishes.

The company’s Homebake product line focuses on the time and cost-conscious consumer. Given inflation-driven grocery prices, frozen foods offer consumers an opportunity to capitalize on quality and value. In 2021, the frozen foods market reached over $70 billion, a 31% increase from 2019, according to NielsenIQ as reported by SuperMarket News.

Frozen foods are typically designated as back-up meals for new frozen food shoppers, based on a report by the American Frozen Food Institute and FMI -- The Food Industry Association. As the frozen food market picks up steam from the pandemic, it’s an opportunity for brands to develop solutions for all meal occasions.

HomeBake 425/:30 as one of several new product launches this year, aligning with growth strategy

The company reported a four-pronged strategy to recover lost market share in Q1, which includes “disruptive innovation and consumer-driven extensions,” reported last week by FoodNavigator-USA.

The HomeBake line, which earned a 92% repeat purchase rate, is one of several new product launches aligning with the company’s reimagination of product portfolios underscored by technology and predicting consumer needs.

CEO Carlos Abrams-Rivera cited Homebake’s 30-minute cook-time as “ownable tech platforms” where everything cooks at the same time, "just like homemade.”

This is the company’s first meal solutions product launched this year, while more recent launches focused on condiments and spices, including four additional Hot Varieties sauces, plant-based mayo and dressing, NotMayo, and the U.S. debut of Just Spices.