Coble, Sally S.

Texas A&amp;M Repository

L-1080CONVENIENCE FOODSSally S. Coble*Convenience foods have become part of the typi-cal con umer's grocery bag. This is a result of risingincomes, women working, increased value of thehomemaker's time and the increased desire for lei-sure activities.*Extension foods and nutrition specialist, The Texas A&M Univer-sity System.14.9Convenience foods accounted for almost one-third of food expenditures during 1973 in the UnitedStates. Purchase of TV dinners tripled between 1962and 1972. And purchase of pizza, hors d'oeuvres andother snack foods rose at least 150 percent from1973-75. Frozen vegetable consumption increased 40percent during the last 10 years due to the popularityof bulk bags and those frozen with sauces, creams andother vegetables. Frozen french-fried potatoes haveincreased consumption of frozen potatoes by 300 per-cent.What are convenience foods?Convenience foods have undergone processing orpreparation ordinarily done in the home. This in-cludes canning, freezing, drying, concentrating, cook-ing, packaging and bottling. Other built-in servicesinclude basic measuring, adding sauces and combin-ing offoods.The convenience food concept has changedthrough the years. To the homemaker several decadesago, a loaf of bread was a real convenience treat. To-day, a convenience food might be a frozen Chineseentree or vegetable casserole. .Cost of convenience is often the one considerationwhen deciding whether or not to buy convenienceTexas Agricultural Extension Service. The Texas A&M University System. Daniel C. Pfannstiel, Director. College Stationfood. However, other factors also should be consid-er d - time and equipment available for food prepa-ration, nutritional value, family likes and dislikes, andthe homemaker's skills. Each of these is consideredblow.Time saversConvenience foods usually save preparation time.Studies conducted by the Drexel Institute and theUnited States Department of Agriculture indicatethat convenience meals can be prepared in one-fourth the time required to prepare meals from basicingredients.Use of convenience foods eliminates some routineta ks of cleaning, squeezing, peeling, measuring andmixing. Preparation is simplified and dishwashing isreduced because fewer utensils are used.Convenience food costsConvenience foods mayor may not cost more thanthe same food prepared entirely by an individual.Total food costs include money spent for ingredients,preparation and storage, electricity or gas, and yourtime.In a recent United States Department of Agricul-ture study, only 36 percent of the convenience foodsanalyzed co tIe s than their homemade counterparts.Vegetables - Almost half the convenience vegeta-ble products cost less than their homemade or freshcounterparts. Included were the commonly usedsingle ingredient items - canned or frozen peas, cornor spinach and frozen french-fried potatoes. Frozenvegetable side dishes and products prepared from de-hydrated potatoes cost more. Fresh corn, asparagusand brussels sprouts were better buys in season thantheir processed counterparts.Fruits and berries - Convenience fruits andberry products cost more than their fresh counter-parts 61 percent of the time. However, reconstitutedfrozen orange juice concentrate was cheaper than anyother form, regardless of the season. Coconut, grape-fruit, peaches, pineapple, raspberries and strawber-ries cost less fresh (in season) than canned or frozen.Except for raspberries and peaches, products avail-able canned or frozen were cheaper in the frozenform.Beef and poultry - Generally, frozen Ineat en-trees cost more than their home-prepared counter-parts. Skillet dinners cost more or Ie than theirhomemade counterparts depending upon th particu-lar brand.Beef patties with soy protein were I s pen ivewhen soy was added to the ground beef at th grocerystore rather than at home. Soy protein patties werecheaper than ground beef patties.Fish and shellfish - Frozen fish ticks and crabcakes were less expensive, but several frozen fish andshellfish entrees were more expensive than thoseprepared at home.Cheeses - Small price differences were found inthe forms of American cheese - loaf, sliced or indi-vidually wrapped. However, American chee 0 food inan aerosol can costs three times more than that in acheese loaf.Specialty dishes - Home prepared and packagedcombination cheese pizzas cost 60 percent Ie s thanfrozen and chilled cheese pizza. However, canned orpackaged combination spaghetti was Ie s co tly thanspaghetti prepared at home.Baked goods and desserts - ost of the frozen,chilled or ready-to-serve products were mor e pen-sive than those prepared from mixes or recipes. Morethan half the complete mixes were less e pen iv thantheir homemade counterparts.Coffee and tea - Instant coffee costs less thanother forms of coffee. However, the lea t expensiveform of tea was brewed tea leaves.Generally, the more ingredients or advance prep-aration provided by the processor of a conveniencefood, the more costly the product will be.Convenience foods, even at higher costs thansimilar home-prepared foods, may be the best buy forthe homemaker with limited time or cooking skills.For small families or persons living alone, conveni-ence foods may be more practical than recipes requir-ing many ingredients and providing several servings.Savings or costs from the use of convenience foodsdepend upon the ingredients. A convenience foodcontaining frequently used ingredients stored in thehome kitchen may be an added expense. On the otherhand, buying large amounts of infrequently used in-gredients to prepare a meal does not save time ormoney.Quality of convenience foodsutritive value of convenience foods mayor maynot equal that of non-processed foods. Food manufac-turers recently increased fortification and enrichmentof convenience foods. The nutrition information labelwill list the food's nutritional value.Other factors determining convenience food qual-ity are the final product's appearance, taste, textureand color. Convenience foods do not always meet thehome-prepared standards. For example, the taste andquality of homemade biscuits and homestyle friedchicken generally are superior to that of their con-venience counterparts.Convenience foods may assure quality that thehomemaker i unable to obtain because of limitedskills. Example include souffies and breads. Becausethe quality of convenience foods is consi tent, theconsumer can be assured of the same taste, color andappearance.Food, varietyConvenience foods give the homemaker oppor-tunities to add interest and variety to meals. Theyintroduce a gourmet's touch to menus without extrawork. Many famous restaurants now package theirhouse specialties for supermarkets. Instant sauces,salad dressings and toppings can add new flavor tofoods.Convenience foods offer variety, thus wideningmenu possibilities, and allowing combinations of in-season foods with out-of-season products in a pro-cessed form.They also offer the creative cook an opportunity tostretch her imagination. Skillful homemaker can addseasonings and other foods to produce pecial di heas well as serve convenience foods a they are.Careful shoppers determine which conveniencefoods are the best buys for their families. Every con-sumer helps determine, by selection and spendingpattern, which convenience foods will stay on themarket. Choices for convenience foods Inay dep ndon the following considerations.Service - Will the product relieve you ofwork youwould rather not do?Quality - Will the product meet th quality ofyour home-prepared variety?Nutritive value - Will the product provide asmany nutrients as your home-prepared product?Time - Will the time saved by using thi productallow time for other activities?Storage - Will the product require special stor-age facilities?Cost - Will the product cost more or less perserving than the home-prepared product?References1. C01nparison of Preparation Ti1ne and Costs of Convenience and H01ne Prepared Food, Food and utritionDepartment, Drexel Institute of Technology, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.2. Food Buying Guide, Unit 2, Extension Service, North Dakota State University, Home Economics 107, October1967, page 22.3. Convenience Foods -1975 Cost Update - A Preli1ninary Paper, USDA, ERS-ARS.4. "Some Convenience Foods Do Save Money,;» Changing Ti1nes, January 1975, pp. 13-15.AcknowledgmentAcknowledgment is given to Frances L. Reasonover, MarilynA. Haggard and Mary K. Sweeten, Extension Foods andNutrition specialists, for their assistance in the preparation ofthis publication.Educational progra1ns conducted by the Texas Agricultural Extension Service serve people ofall ages regardless ofsocio-econ01nic levels, racecolor, ex, religion or national ori lin.Coop rati E t n ion Work in Agriculture and Home Economics, The Texas A&M University System and the United States Departm nt ofgricultur coop rating. Di tributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8, 1914, as amended, and June 30, 1914.20M-4-76, Rid F& 2

Convenience Foods.

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Convenience Foods.

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Convenience Foods.

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