Just heat and eat for something hot, quick and tasty

WHY should bakery chains and coffee shops grab all the hot-food-to-go action? Kepak Convenience Foods reckons it has the products and kit needed to allow c-stores to capture spend from consumers looking for snacks that it describes as “hot, quick and tasty” throughout the day.
Kepak’s brands Rustlers and Zugo’s Deli Café cover ready-to-microwave burgers, sub, wraps, pasties, pasta pots and chilled soup. The lines can, the company argues, meet a broad range of food-to-go demands, providing items for lunch, dinner, and fridge-filler quick meals. And by installing a microwave, shop customers can heat and eat hot snacks right away.
“Kepak provides an immediate solution to these shopper missions with the Rustlers and Zugo’s ranges and its new all-in-one microwave and stand which has helped to boost sales for hot, quick and tasty products by up to 280%,” channel director Angela Daulby said.
“The ‘Heat and Eat’ stand is pre-programmed to heat Rustlers and Zugo’s hot snacking lines but can be used to heat any hot, quick and tasty products. And it comes with a built-in bin to help keep the surrounding area tidy.”

With a shop-installed microwave, Rustlers and Zugo’s Deli Café products can be heated in store for consumption immediately after purchase.
With a shop-installed microwave, Rustlers and Zugo’s Deli Café products can be heated in store for consumption immediately after purchase.

Daulby continued: “Consumers shop at different times of the day for different purposes. HIM CTP researched showed that 79% of purchases in convenience outlets are made by shoppers on an eat-now mission which, combined with our microwave stands, presents a huge opportunity for retailers.
88e_0913“It’s important to offer customers a way of heating their snacks in store, so they can eat them straight away. The Kepak-branded microwave is an inexpensive addition to a store and can boost sales of hot snacking products without the concerns over waste and the additional labour costs associated with food-to-go counters.”
Heat and Eat stands with microwaves cost £500 plus VAT, while stands without microwaves cost £360 plus VAT.
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• Chilled savoury snacks are on the up and up, according to Mattessons, Wall’s and Cheestrings owner Kerry Foods. The company claims cheese and meat products are 88c_0913taking over crisps and sweets as the foods to munch on the go, as part of a total chilled foods category currently worth £21.6bn and growing at 3% year-on-year according to Nielsen Scantrack.
Kerry Foods puts the success of Mattessons Fridge Raiders, made from 100% seasoned chicken breast, down to the desire for healthy nibbles for children as well as adults and to increasing demand for snacks for children when they return from school.
“With a limited option for healthier on-the-go snacks, these are proving popular with families because of the convenient format and healthy credentials,” consumer marketing controller Richard Tyler said.
“They are perfectly positioned to fulfil a parent’s desire for a nutritious tasty snack that they can give children to fill the gap between lunch and dinner.”