Enhanced Eating: The Future of Healthier Convenience Foods

At IMCD, we understand the growing demand for Enhanced Eating—a trend where consumers seek foods that offer both health benefits and great taste. With the right ingredients, formulation expertise, and a clear commitment to quality, your brand can lead the change in this exciting new chapter for convenience foods.

A growing number of consumers claim they are eating healthily most of the time. This includes choosing foods that are lower in fat, sugar, and salt, or that are fortified with added nutrients such as fibre and protein. But just because consumers are prioritizing health doesn’t mean they’re willing to compromise on taste, texture, or convenience. In fact, according to Mintel reports, nearly half (48%) of European consumers believe a product is good value for money if it has health benefits.

This is where food manufacturers have an opportunity to innovate—by combining high-quality ingredients with enhanced nutritional profiles. Convenience foods like ready meals, sauces, and soups can meet these expectations, leading to healthier products that also appeal to consumers’ tastes and convenience needs.

As consumers demand healthier options, the convenience food market has room to grow in areas like dressings, sauces, and soups. For example, more than 50% of European consumers would buy soup if it had added health benefits, like fibre. While soups are often seen as healthy, many products still lack sufficient fibre content. In fact, most wet soups in the EU average just 1.4% fibre content.

This presents a clear opportunity: fortifying soups with fibre and other beneficial ingredients can help meet consumer demand for more nutritious, convenient meals.

Soups are a prime example of how to balance comforting flavours with healthier ingredients. A typical vegetable soup can be easily boosted with functional ingredients like PROMITOR® Soluble Fibre, which enhances fibre content while maintaining a clean taste and smooth mouthfeel. For instance, a Red Lentil and Carrot Soup using PROMITOR® Soluble Fibre provides:

PROMITOR® Soluble Fibre helps manufacturers meet the demand for fibre-rich, clean-label foods without compromising taste, making it an ideal ingredient for fortifying soups and other convenience foods.

Consumers today define value as not just affordability, but also the presence of healthier, more natural ingredients. Whether it’s reducing fat, sugar, or adding more fibre, there is strong consumer interest in foods that deliver both on taste and nutrition. Manufacturers who can balance these needs will be well-positioned for growth.

However, this innovation comes with challenges: ensuring nutritional claims meet regulatory standards, maintaining product quality and shelf life, and managing consumer expectations around taste and texture.

At IMCD, we’re here to help you navigate these challenges and transform your convenience food offerings.

With state-of-the-art labs, customer innovation centres, and decades of experience working with leading brands across Europe, we offer end-to-end support in:

By collaborating with IMCD, you gain access to a wealth of expertise that will help you speed up innovation, enhance the nutritional value of your products, and maintain a competitive edge in the rapidly evolving convenience food market.

As the future of food becomes more health-focused, let’s work together to create convenience foods that meet the needs of today’s health-conscious consumers.

Contact IMCD to learn how we can help you innovate and stay ahead of the competition.