PROJECT REPORT

ON

To Understand Consumers Behaviour towards Ready-to-Eat food/Semi-processed food.

Submitted to MD University Rohtak in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree of Master of Business Administration

2008-09

Submitted by:

Name :-

Ajay Sharma

Class :- MBA(IB)-4th SEM University Roll No./Enrollment No. :-

INSTITUTE OF LAW & MANAGEMENT STUDIES

982 ILMS ,SECTOR 40-GURGAON

Acknowledgement
While presenting this project report, I give my sincere regards as well as gratitude to all those who helped me in completing my project successfully by spending their valuable time without which the project wont be able to complete. I am thankful to those who encouraged me to complete the project by giving their assistance, motivating me and vehemence. I would give sincere regards and thanks to my Faculty Mrs.PRATIBHA BHARDWAJ for giving her guidance during my whole project. She helped me in analyzing the consumer behaviour. This has helped me in preparing my report on TO UNDERSTAND CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR TOWARDS READY-TO-EAT FOOD/SEMI-PROCESSED FOOD in a better way.

Table of Content
Objective of the study:- ...................................................................................................11 Literature Review.............................................................................................................12 ..........................................................................................................................................16 Research Design:-.............................................................................................................17 Table 1: Common attitude of the respondents who purchase RTE..............................19 Table 3-Correlation between variables and factors (who purchase RTE)...................21 Table 4-Correlation between variables and factors (who dont purchase RTE).........21 Table 5- Factors............................................................................................................22 Chart 1-Cluster analysis_1............................................................................................24 I buy ready-to-eat food.................................................................................................25 Table 6-Age..................................................................................................................25 Chart 2-Age .................................................................................................................26 Table 7-Gender.............................................................................................................27 Chart 3-Gender.............................................................................................................27 Table 8-Income Group..................................................................................................28 Chart 4-Income Group .................................................................................................28 Table 9-Marital Status..................................................................................................29 Chart 5 Marital Status.................................................................................................29 Table 10-No. of family members..................................................................................30 Chart 6-No. of Family Members..................................................................................30 Table 11-Residence......................................................................................................31 Chart 7-Residence.........................................................................................................31 Table 12-Occupation....................................................................................................32 Chart 8-Occupation.......................................................................................................32 Respondent who dont purchase RTE food..................................................................33 Chart 9-Cluster Analysis_2...........................................................................................33 Table 13-Age................................................................................................................34 Chart 10-Age................................................................................................................34 Table-14 Gender...........................................................................................................35 Chart 11-Gender...........................................................................................................35 Table 15-Annual Income..............................................................................................36 Chart 12-Annual Income..............................................................................................36 Table 16-Marital Status................................................................................................37 Chart 13-Marital Status.................................................................................................37 Table 17-No. of family Members.................................................................................38 Chart 14-No. of family Members.................................................................................38 Table 18-Residence......................................................................................................39 Chart 15-Residence.......................................................................................................39 Table 19-Occupation....................................................................................................40 Chart 16-Occupation.....................................................................................................40 Chart 17-Dendogram_1................................................................................................41 Chart 18-Dendogram_2................................................................................................42 Table 20-Dimensional Representation of Brands.........................................................44 Chart 19-Perceptual map of Brand...............................................................................44 3

Table 21-z-test for health and nutrition........................................................................46 Table 22-z-test for time of preparation.........................................................................46 Table 23-z-test for price................................................................................................48 Questionnaire............................................................................................................55

List of Tables
Objective of the study:- ...................................................................................................11 Literature Review.............................................................................................................12 ..........................................................................................................................................16 Research Design:-.............................................................................................................17 Table 1: Common attitude of the respondents who purchase RTE..............................19 Table 3-Correlation between variables and factors (who purchase RTE)...................21 Table 4-Correlation between variables and factors (who dont purchase RTE).........21 Table 5- Factors............................................................................................................22 Chart 1-Cluster analysis_1............................................................................................24 I buy ready-to-eat food.................................................................................................25 Table 6-Age..................................................................................................................25 Chart 2-Age .................................................................................................................26

Table 7-Gender.............................................................................................................27 Chart 3-Gender.............................................................................................................27 Table 8-Income Group..................................................................................................28 Chart 4-Income Group .................................................................................................28 Table 9-Marital Status..................................................................................................29 Chart 5 Marital Status.................................................................................................29 Table 10-No. of family members..................................................................................30 Chart 6-No. of Family Members..................................................................................30 Table 11-Residence......................................................................................................31 Chart 7-Residence.........................................................................................................31 Table 12-Occupation....................................................................................................32 Chart 8-Occupation.......................................................................................................32 Respondent who dont purchase RTE food..................................................................33 Chart 9-Cluster Analysis_2...........................................................................................33 Table 13-Age................................................................................................................34 Chart 10-Age................................................................................................................34 Table-14 Gender...........................................................................................................35 Chart 11-Gender...........................................................................................................35 Table 15-Annual Income..............................................................................................36 Chart 12-Annual Income..............................................................................................36 Table 16-Marital Status................................................................................................37 Chart 13-Marital Status.................................................................................................37 Table 17-No. of family Members.................................................................................38 Chart 14-No. of family Members.................................................................................38 Table 18-Residence......................................................................................................39 Chart 15-Residence.......................................................................................................39 Table 19-Occupation....................................................................................................40 Chart 16-Occupation.....................................................................................................40 Chart 17-Dendogram_1................................................................................................41 Chart 18-Dendogram_2................................................................................................42 Table 20-Dimensional Representation of Brands.........................................................44 Chart 19-Perceptual map of Brand...............................................................................44 Table 21-z-test for health and nutrition........................................................................46 Table 22-z-test for time of preparation.........................................................................46 Table 23-z-test for price................................................................................................48 Questionnaire............................................................................................................55

List of Charts
Objective of the study:- ...................................................................................................11 Literature Review.............................................................................................................12 ..........................................................................................................................................16 Research Design:-.............................................................................................................17 Table 1: Common attitude of the respondents who purchase RTE..............................19 Table 3-Correlation between variables and factors (who purchase RTE)...................21 Table 4-Correlation between variables and factors (who dont purchase RTE).........21 Table 5- Factors............................................................................................................22 Chart 1-Cluster analysis_1............................................................................................24 I buy ready-to-eat food.................................................................................................25 Table 6-Age..................................................................................................................25 Chart 2-Age .................................................................................................................26 Table 7-Gender.............................................................................................................27 Chart 3-Gender.............................................................................................................27 Table 8-Income Group..................................................................................................28 Chart 4-Income Group .................................................................................................28 Table 9-Marital Status..................................................................................................29 Chart 5 Marital Status.................................................................................................29 Table 10-No. of family members..................................................................................30 Chart 6-No. of Family Members..................................................................................30 Table 11-Residence......................................................................................................31 Chart 7-Residence.........................................................................................................31 Table 12-Occupation....................................................................................................32 Chart 8-Occupation.......................................................................................................32 Respondent who dont purchase RTE food..................................................................33 Chart 9-Cluster Analysis_2...........................................................................................33 Table 13-Age................................................................................................................34 Chart 10-Age................................................................................................................34 Table-14 Gender...........................................................................................................35 Chart 11-Gender...........................................................................................................35 Table 15-Annual Income..............................................................................................36 Chart 12-Annual Income..............................................................................................36 Table 16-Marital Status................................................................................................37 Chart 13-Marital Status.................................................................................................37 Table 17-No. of family Members.................................................................................38 Chart 14-No. of family Members.................................................................................38 Table 18-Residence......................................................................................................39 Chart 15-Residence.......................................................................................................39 Table 19-Occupation....................................................................................................40 Chart 16-Occupation.....................................................................................................40 Chart 17-Dendogram_1................................................................................................41 Chart 18-Dendogram_2................................................................................................42 Table 20-Dimensional Representation of Brands.........................................................44 Chart 19-Perceptual map of Brand...............................................................................44 6

Table 21-z-test for health and nutrition........................................................................46 Table 22-z-test for time of preparation.........................................................................46 Table 23-z-test for price................................................................................................48 Questionnaire............................................................................................................55

Executive Summary

Project Outline:As day by day India is adopting the western culture. The young generation is moving towards Pizza rather then Bajre ki roti. From last few years the trend shows that time is money. So, no one get time to cook food hours and hours every day. So, they go for restaurant food, fast food and ready made food available in the market. But for this food also when you want to consume it, you have to go to market to purchase it. The marketer found this and the new concept of the Ready-to-eat come into the picture. You can purchase RTE food products and easily stored it in your home. For the consumption the consumer has to put this product in boil water and the food is ready. Another benefit of this kind of food is anyone can prepare it whether the person know cooking or not. Objective of the study:My objective for this study is to understand consumer perception towards RTE food/semi processed food product. I try to understand major factors affecting the purchase decision of the consumer. And try to map the performance of the national brand present in the market. I also tried to find out the segment for RTE food product. Research Design:I followed Descriptive Research Method in Conclusive Research Design for this project as I am trying to understand the buying behavior of the consumer. Through the secondary research I tried to find out the attributes of RTE product. To get insight of the attributes of RTE product I visited some of the shopkeepers, retail stores. The attributes of the RTE product like ease of use, price, taste, nutritional value, shelf life and packaging. To know the consumer attitude towards RTE food product I interviewed some of the customer and try to find out the reasons for their purchase and their opinion about RTE food product. From this data I prepared a questionnaire. In which I used attitudinal statement and likert scale. For the sampling ---- cluster random sampling technique. The whole population is divided in the cluster. Then, I assigned random number to each cluster. There from the selection of location, area and chunk for the survey. Sample size 150 from the 17 lakhs(approx.) population of GURGAON for the survey.

Data Analysis:To analyze the data which we got from the primacy research we used the statistical tools like mean, mode, median, factor analysis, cluster analysis, multidimensional scaling. Through the mean, mode and median we try to find out common attitude of the consumer towards each attitudinal statement. Factor analysis help us in finding out the major factors for the RTE food products. Through the cluster analysis we try to find out the common characteristics of the consumer of the RTE food products. This analysis also helps us in finding the segment for the RTE food product. MDS help us in mapping the national brands and their position in the mind of the consumers. Results:From our analysis we found that From the sample of 150 respondents only 27% of the respondents are using RTE food product. The major factors affecting the decision of the consumers are health and nutrition, time of preparation and price. 57% of the consumers of the RTE food products are single, male, and belongs to age group of 20-30. 50% of the consumer who consumed RTE food products are belongs to income group below 100000 lakh. Most preferred national brand for the consumer for two factors health and nutrition and time of preparation is MTR. Ashirwad and Kohinoor scored well for health and nutrition but not scored well for time of preparation. Gits is not preferred by the consumers for both the factors.

Recommendation: Marketers have to target young bachelor for the RTE food product. Marketers have to make proposition for RTE food product such that target segment found it healthy as well as less time consuming.

Channel of distribution should be taken care so that RTE food product is easily available in near by store.

10

Objective of the study: . To understand the consumers behavior towards Ready-to-Eat food /semi processed food. To understand major factors affecting the purchase decision of the consumers. To map different national brand present in the market. To identify the segment for this kind of product.

11

Literature Review
Our project is based on food items. The food items can be classified into: Processed food, semi-processed food, ready-to-eat food and unprocessed food. There are various brands in Ready-to-Eat food such as MTR, KOHINOOR, ASHIRWAD, VETEE, EVERGREEN EXPORTS, ANIS EXPORT, SM FOODS and GITS. Mostly the consumers prefer MTR brand as their preference. Our product has several attributes such as price, ease of preparation, nutrition value, time, shelf life and health. Although being brands they are unable to position the product well in the market because the consumers do not prefer packaged food. The consumers mostly prefer either home-made food or food from restaurants as they think that the food they consume should be nutritious.

12

To study our project of understanding the consumers behavior towards Readyto-Eat we first studied consumer decision making process which means knowing the perceptions of the consumers while purchasing the product. The consumer buying process model is shown as under:-

CONSUMER BUYING PROCESS MODEL

13

The consumer buying is for the rational consumer. But a marketer cannot exactly know what is going on in the minds of the consumers which are very necessary for the marketer. The inside mind of the consumer can be known through the Black-box theory which is the theory of consciousness and states that the mind is fully understood once the inputs and outputs are well defined, and generally couples this with a radical skepticism regarding the possibility of ever successfully describing the underlying structure, mechanism, and dynamics of the mind. The marketer cannot know the consumers mind so through this research we get to understand the consumers behavior towards these types of products. By knowing the consumer behavior a marketer can know that how a product can be positioned in the target market. Positioning refers as the act of designing the companys offerings and image to occupy a distinctive place in the mind of the consumers or the target market. Branding is helpful in positioning the product in the eyes of the consumers. Branding refers to endowing products and services differentiating with others in terms of name, sign, symbol, design or a combination of them. Brand dimension is a research tool specially designed to analyze brand position in the market. It investigates brand awareness, usage, competitive environment, selection process, important qualities for the consumer and others brand correspondent to them. Segmentation is essentially the identification of subsets of buyers within a market who share similar needs and who demonstrate similar buyer behavior. Cluster sampling refers to divide the whole population into homogenous groups which is helpful in doing the survey for the marketer. Factor analysis is a statistical data reduction technique used to explain variability among observed random variables in terms of fewer unobserved random variables called factors. Cluster analysis is a class of statistical techniques that can be applied to data that exhibit natural groupings. Cluster analysis sorts through the raw data and groups them into clusters. A cluster is a group of relatively homogeneous cases or observations. Objects in a cluster are similar to each other. They are also dissimilar to objects outside the cluster, particularly objects in other clusters.

14

The dishes with their brands are as follows: A. MTR: It provides the following dishes South Indian- Avial, Kesari Bhath, Khara Bhath, Pongal, Bisibele Bhath and Pineapple SS Curry. North Indian- Alu Mutter, Chana Masala, Dal Fry, Dal Makhani, Navratan Kurma, Paneer Butter Masala, Paneer Makhani, Bhindi Masala, Mix.Veg. Curry, Palak Paneer, Peas & Mushroom, Rajma Masala, Veg. Pulao, Pav Bhaji Main Course- Alu Mutter, Avial, Chana Masala, Dal Fry, Dal Makhani, Navratan Kurma, Paneer Butter Masala, Paneer Makhani, Bhindi Masala, Bisibele Bhath, Mix. Veg. Curry, Palak Paneer, Peas & Mushroom, Pineapple SS Curry, Rajma Masala, Veg. Pulao Snacks- Kesari Bhath, Khara Bhath, Pongal, Pav Bhaji,Poha

B. ASHIRWAD: It serves the following dishes to the consumers Chicken Chettinad, Chicken Darbari, Dal Bhukara, Mirch ka Salan, Paneer Darbari, Rice Treat( Chinese fried rice), Rice Treat(Majubal lemon rice), Punjabi Kadhi Pakora and many more.

Other brands also serve similar food items with varieties.

15

16

Research Design:To know the factors that affects the decision of the consumer for there preference towards ready-to-eat / semi-processed food we visited small grocery shopkeeper and some retail outlet too in Ahmedabad. We followed Descriptive Research Method in Conclusive Research Design for this project as we try to understand the buying behavior of the consumer. Secondary Research We collected some of the news item as well as visited web sight of the company who are in the business of the ready-to-eat food to get basic idea about the product and its attributes and buying behavior of the consumer towards ready-to-eat and semi processed food. Construction of questionnaire We conducted the interview of the shopkeeper to understand the attributes of the readyto-eat food. To get the insight of the consumer and to understand their buying behaviour we interviewed consumer. From this data we prepared a questionnaire of attitudinal statement. Sampling Procedure We used cluster random sampling method to select the sample. For cluster random sampling first we divide the whole population of Ahmedbad in the cluster as well as sub cluster. Then we assigned random number for each cluster. We repeated this procedure again and then we randomly select the primary area, sample location and chunk for the sample. We had taken the sample size of 300 respondents from 56 lakhs population of Ahmedabad for our survey. Primary Research Since the research objective is directed towards the uncovering of consumer buying behavior hence primary research will be used for the purpose. Scope of the Study This study depend on the authenticity of the secondary data available and that of the respondents.

17

Data Analysis:For the data analysis first we conducted the Factor Analysis to find out the major attributes or major factor which affects the buying decision of the consumer. Then we conducted Cluster Analysis to find out the cluster with homogeneous purchase behavior. Through the cluster analysis we try to find out the homogeneous group of the consumer who give positive weight to both the factor which we found through factor analysis. To know which brand stands where for these two factors we have done Multidimensional Scaling. Through the multidimensional scaling we try to find out which brand stands where in the mind of the consumer for the selected factors. We also find out the Mean, Mode and Median to know the common attitude of all the respondents for that particular attitudinal statement. We use Z-test to find out that the factors which we found is play important role in the purchase decision of the consumer or not.

18

Common Attitude of the consumer towards Ready-to-Eat food:Table 1: Common attitude of the respondents who purchase RTE
Attitude Consumer of the

NO. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Reason for purchasing RTE food

it saves my cooking time it is convenient to carry for a change

Strongly Agree Agree Agree

it doesn't require any ingredient to be added Agree packaging is attractive it is easily available it can be easily stored
Indifference Agree Agree

it is priced low as compared to restaurant Indifference it does not contain any preservative & is fresh Indifference well established brand it can be prepared by anybody Agree veg. food is unavailable abroad Indifference Suggested by friend/ relative/ shopkeeper Indifference we are a working couple
Indifference Agree

Most of the respondents are strongly agree with the statements that RTE food products save their cooking time. Respondents dont want to give opinion about packaging and price. Most of the respondents agree with the statement related to ease of use.

19

Table 2- Common attitude of the respondents who dont purchase RTE

NO. Reason for not purchasing RTE food Attitude Consumer of the

1 2 3 4

I dont buy ready-to-eat food because it is not fresh as it contains preservatives Strongly Agree often desired variety is unavailable Agree it is not tasty not available in provision stores Agree eateries are available at short distance and they also provide home delivery Strongly Agree inadequate quantity for the people having heavy diet Agree low in nutrition it might be adulterated bad past experience it is expensive
Strongly Agree Agree Strongly disagree Agree Strongly Agree

5 6 7 8 9 10

Most of the respondents are strongly agree with the statement that RTE food products are not healthy and nutritious, eateries are available at short distance and they also provide home delivery and it is not tasty. Most of them dont have any past experience. Most of the respondents agree with the statement that desired variety is not available, it is not available in the provision stores, inadequate quantity, it is adulterated and it is expensive.

20

Factor Analysis:Table 3-Correlation between variables and factors (who purchase RTE) I purchase RTE food
F1 I purchase RTE as it saves my cooking time it is convenient to carry for a change it doesn't require any ingredient to be added packaging is attractive it is easily available it can be easily stored it is priced low as compared to restaurant it does not contain any preservative & is fresh well established brand it can be prepared by anybody veg. food is unavailable abroad suggested by friend/ relative/ shopkeeper we are a working couple 0.410 0.507 -0.090 0.206 0.646 0.443 0.487 0.448 0.693 0.333 -0.164 0.191 0.483 0.530 F2 -0.002 -0.213 -0.367 -0.179 0.040 0.371 -0.148 0.244 0.083 -0.022 -0.695 -0.808 -0.131 -0.115 F3 -0.371 0.156 -0.174 -0.478 0.247 0.003 0.116 -0.634 0.035 -0.520 -0.250 0.082 0.340 0.283 F4 0.638 0.102 -0.163 -0.434 -0.119 -0.557 -0.423 -0.002 0.067 0.119 -0.116 0.013 -0.059 0.400 F5 -0.063 -0.495 0.571 -0.389 -0.029 0.241 -0.068 0.169 0.425 -0.157 0.028 0.160 -0.237 0.235 F6 -0.223 -0.407 -0.467 0.333 -0.039 0.050 -0.479 0.199 0.107 -0.169 0.215 0.149 0.320 0.319

Table 4-Correlation between variables and factors (who dont purchase RTE) I dont purchase RTE food
F1 I dont buy ready-to-eat food because it is not fresh as it contains preservatives often desired variety is unavailable it is not tasty not available in provision stores eateries are available at short distance and they also provide home delivery inadequate quantity for the people having heavy diet low in nutrition it might be adulterated bad past experience it is expensive 0.542 0.413 0.721 0.694 0.495 0.579 0.608 0.355 -0.345 0.486 F2 0.432 -0.403 0.352 -0.315 0.207 -0.334 0.329 -0.573 -0.444 -0.331 F3 0.301 -0.433 0.136 -0.404 -0.318 -0.059 0.335 0.353 0.443 0.438

21

Factors:Table 5- Factors
I Purchase Ready-to-eat food because (Health and Nutrition) Factor-1 it is convenient to carry packaging is attractive it does not contain any preservative & is fresh we are a working couple Factor-2 it can be prepared by anybody veg. food is unavailable abroad Factor-3 it doesnt require any ingredient to be added it is priced low as compared to restaurant well established brand Factor-4 I purchase RTE as it saves my cooking time we are a working couple it doesnt require any ingredient to be added it is easily available it can be easily stored Factor-5 for a change it does not contain any preservative & is fresh it is convenient to carry Factor-6 it is convenient to carry it can be easily stored (Ease/Time of preparation)

22

I dont Purchase Ready-to-eat food because Factor-1 (Health and Nutrition) I dont buy ready-to-eat food because it is not fresh as it contains preservatives it is not tasty not available in provision stores inadequate quantity for the people having heavy diet low in nutrition it is expensive Factor-2 I dont buy ready-to-eat food because it is not fresh as it contains preservatives often desired variety is unavailable it might be adulterated bad past experience Factor-3 (Choice) Price Factor bad past experience it is expensive often desired variety is unavailable not available in provision stores

Major Factor:From the factor analysis we identified the following factors which play important role in the purchase decision of the consumer: 1. Health and Nutrition 2. Time of preparation 3. Price

23

Cluster Analysis:Respondent who purchase RTE food

Observations (axes F1 and F4)

3 2 1

F4

0 -1 -2 -3 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4

F1

Chart 1-Cluster analysis_1

With the help of chart of the cluster we found out the respondents who gave more weights to both the factors Health and Nutrition and Time of preparation. We found 14 respondents who gave important to both the factors.

24

After finding the group of people who gave important to both the factors we analyzed their demographic information to find out the characteristic of that particular cluster. I buy ready-to-eat food 1. Age Table 6-Age
BELOW 20 20 to 30 31 to 40 41 to 50 51 to 60 Above 60 1 7 1 5 0 0

Age

0% 36%

7%

1-BELOW 20 2-20 to 30 3-31 to 40 4-41 to 50 50% 5-51 to 60 6-Above 60

7%

25

Chart 2-Age In the above graph we can see that 50% of the respondent who gave important to both the factors are belongs to the age group of 20 to 30.

26

2. Gender Table 7-Gender

Male Female

8 6

Gender

2-Female 43% 1-Male 57%

1-Male 2-Female

Chart 3-Gender In the above graph we can see that from 14 respondents 57% respondents are male.

27

3. Income Group

Table 8-Income Group

Below 100000 100000-300000 300001-400000 Above 400000 7 4 3 0

Income Group

21%

0% 1-Below 100000 2-100000-300000 50% 3-300001-400000 4-Above 400000

29%

Chart 4-Income Group 50% of the respondents form the 14 respondents are belongs to group below 100000 income group.

28

4. Marital Status Table 9-Marital Status

1-Single 2-Married

8 6

Marital Status

43% 1-Single 2-Married 57%

Chart 5 Marital Status 57% of respondents are single who gave important to both the factor health and nutrition and time of preparation.

29

5. No.of family members

Table 10-No. of family members

1-1 to 2 2-3 to 4 3-5 to 6 4-7 or more 0 6 6 2

No. of Family members

14%

0% 43% 1-1 to 2 2-3 to 4 3-5 to 6 4-7 or more

43%

Chart 6-No. of Family Members 43% of respondents have 3 to 4 family members. 43% of the respondents have 5 to 6 family members.

30

6. Residence Table 11-Residence

1-Living in own house 2-Rented Appartment 3-Shared Accomodation

9 3 2

Residence

14% 1-Living in own house 21% 65% 2-Rented Appartment 3-Shared Accomodation

Chart 7-Residence 65% of respondents who gave important to both the factors have their own house. Very less numbers of the respondents stay in shared accommodation.

31

7. Occupation

Table 12-Occupation
1-Service 2-Business 3-Student 4-Professional 5-Others 2 4 8 0 0

Occupation

0%

14%

1-Service 2-Business 3-Student

57%

29%

4-Professional 5-Others

Chart 8-Occupation 57% of the respondents are student who gave importance to both the factors.

32

Respondent who dont purchase RTE food

Observations (axes F1 and F3)

4 3 2 1

F3
0 -1 -2 -3 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3

F1

Chart 9-Cluster Analysis_2 With the help of chart of the cluster we find out the respondents who gave more weights to both the factors Health and Nutrition and Price. We found 14 respondents who gave important to both the factors.

33

I dont buy ready-to-eat 1.Age Table 13-Age

1-BELOW 20 2-20 to 30 3-31 to 40 4-41 to 50 5-51 to 60 6-Above 60

0 2 1 1 0 1

Age

20% 0%

0% 40%

1-BELOW 20 2-20 to 30 3-31 to 40 4-41 to 50

20% 20%

5-51 to 60 6-Above 60

Chart 10-Age 40% of the respondents from 5 respondents belong to the age group of 20 to 30.

34

2. Gender Table-14 Gender

1-Male 2-Female

1 4

Gender

20% 1-Male 2-Female 80%

Chart 11-Gender From the above chart we can see that 80% of the respondents are female who gave weights to both the factors.

35

3. Annual Income Table 15-Annual Income

1-Below 100000 2-100000-300000 3-300001-400000 4-Above 400000

2 1 2 0

Annual Income

0% 40% 40% 1-Below 100000 2-100000-300000 3-300001-400000 4-Above 400000 20%

Chart 12-Annual Income 40% of the respondents belong to below 100000 income group and 40% of the respondents belong to 300001 to 400000 income group.

36

4. Marital Status Table 16-Marital Status

1-Single 2-Married

2 3

Marital Status

40% 1-Single 2-Married 60%

Chart 13-Marital Status 60% of the respondents are married who gave importance to both the factors and not purchase RTE food.

37

5. No. of Family Members

Table 17-No. of family Members

1-1 to 2 2-3 to 4 3-5 to 6 4-7 or more

0 2 2 1

No. of Family Members

20%

0% 40% 1-1 to 2 2-3 to 4 3-5 to 6 4-7 or more

40%

Chart 14-No. of family Members 40% of them have 3 to 4 family members and 40% of them have 5 to 6 family members.

38

6. Residence Table 18-Residence

1-Living in own house 2-Rented Appartment 3-Shared Accomodation

4 0 1

Residence

20% 0% 1-Living in own house 2-Rented Appartment 3-Shared Accomodation 80%

Chart 15-Residence 80% of the respondents have their own house that dont purchase RTE food and gave important to both the factors.

39

7. Occupation Table 19-Occupation

1-Service 2-Business 3-Student 4-Professional 5-Others

2 1 2 0 0

Occupation

0% 40% 40% 1-Service 2-Business 3-Student 4-Professional 20% 5-Others

Chart 16-Occupation 40% of the respondents are doing service and 40% of the respondents are students who gave important to both the factors.

40

Dissimilarity
10 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Chart 17-Dendogram_1

Dendrogram

41

Obs73 Obs72 Obs67 Obs6 Obs31 Obs55 Obs56 Obs66 Obs74 Obs13 Obs36 Obs2 Obs76 Obs71 Obs16 Obs60 Obs33 Obs37 Obs70 Obs25 Obs47 Obs35 Obs29 Obs78 Obs15 Obs32 Obs49 Obs7 Obs10 Obs34 Obs46 Obs3 Obs44 Obs27 Obs65 Obs51 Obs63 Obs38 Obs5 Obs11 Obs59 Obs21 Obs45 Obs9 Obs50 Obs53 Obs68 Obs12 Obs52 Obs48 Obs62 Obs77 Obs17 Obs61 Obs69 Obs18 Obs81 Obs23 Obs79 Obs28 Obs80 Obs82 Obs24 Obs54 Obs20 Obs75 Obs30 Obs19 Obs41 Obs14 Obs57 Obs58 Obs64 Obs1 Obs43 Obs8 Obs26 Obs40 Obs22 Obs39 Obs4 Obs42

Dendrogram
1 0

Dissimilarity

Chart 18-Dendogram_2

42

Cluster Analysis:After doing Cluster Analysis for the two factors Health and nutrition and time for preparation we came to know following characteristic of the cluster who purchase RTE products 50% of them belong to age group 20 to 30 57% of them are male 50% of them are belong to below 100000 income group 57% of them are single 57% of them are student Cluster Analysis for the two factors Health and nutrition and price we came to know following characteristic of the cluster who do not purchase RTE products 80% of them are female 60% of them are married

43

Multi Dimensional Scaling:Result for a 2-dimensional representation space Table 20-Dimensional Representation of Brands
Dim1 0.279 0.256 -0.370 0.199 -0.364 Dim2 0.236 -0.041 0.283 -0.246 -0.232

MTR Ashirwad Vetee Kohinoor Gits

Dim1:Time for prep

Dim2:Health n Nutrition

Configuration (Kruskal's stress (1) = 0.129)

Vetee 0.3 M TR 0.2

0.1

Dim2

0 -0.4 -0.3 -0.2 -0.1 -0.1 0 0.1 0.2 0.3 A shirwad 0.4

-0.2 Gits -0.3 Kohinoor

Dim1

Chart 19-Perceptual map of Brand

44

Multi dimensional Scaling:When we do perceptual mapping for the two factors; Health and nutrition and Time of preparation we came to know that most of the consumer perceived MTR as a good brand for both the factors Vetee scored well for time of preparation but not scored well for Health and nutrition. Ashirwad scored well for Health and nutrition but not scored well for time of preparation Kohinoor scored well for Health and nutrition but not scored well for time of preparation Gits scored negative for both the factors.

45

Two-tail Z-test:Table 21-z-test for health and nutrition Ho:-Health and nutrition play important role in purchase decision of the consumer.
Summary statistics: Obs. Without missing data 82

Variable F1

Observations 82

Obs. With missing data 0

Minimum -5.244

Maximum 4.051

Mean 0.000

Std. deviation 1.653

One-sample t-test / Two-tailed test: 95% confidence interval on the mean: ] -0.363 , 0.363 [ Difference t (Observed value) t (Critical value) DF p-value (Two-tailed) alpha 0.000 0.000 -1.990 81 1.000 0.05

Test interpretation: H0: The difference between the means is not significantly different from 0. Ha: The difference between the means is significantly different from 0.

Result:-Health and nutrition play important role in purchase decision of the consumer. It affects the behavior of the consumer. Ho:-Time of preparation plays important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. Table 22-z-test for time of preparation
Summary statistics:

Variable F4

Observations 82

Obs. With missing data 0

Obs. Without missing data 82

Minimum -3.089

Maximum 2.845

Mean 0.000

Std. deviation 1.161

46

One-sample t-test / Two-tailed test: 95% confidence interval on the mean: ] -0.255 , 0.255 [ Difference t (Observed value) t (Critical value) DF p-value (Twotailed) alpha 0.000 0.000 -1.990 81 1.000 0.05

Test interpretation: H0: The difference between the means is not significantly different from 0. Ha: The difference between the means is significantly different from 0. As the computed p-value is greater than the significance level alpha=0.05, one should accept the null hypothesis H0. The risk to reject the null hypothesis H0 while it is true is 100.00%.

Result:-Time of preparation plays important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. It affects the behavior of the consumer.

47

Ho:-Price plays important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. Table 23-z-test for price
Summary statistics: Obs. Without missing data 217

Variable F3

Observations 217

Obs. With missing data 0

Minimum -3.076

Maximum 2.543

Mean 0.000

Std. deviation 1.093

One-sample t-test / Two-tailed test: 95% confidence interval on the mean: ] -0.146 , 0.146 [ Difference t (Observed value) t (Critical value) DF p-value (Two-tailed) alpha 0.000 0.000 -1.971 216 1.000 0.05

H0: The difference between the means is not significantly different from 0. Ha: The difference between the means is significantly different from 0. As the computed p-value is greater than the significance level alpha=0.05, one should accept the null hypothesis H0. The risk to reject the null hypothesis H0 while it is true is 100.00%.

Result:-Price plays important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. It affects the purchase decision of the consumer.

48

Tow-tail Z-test:With the help of two-tail z-test we got the result that, Health and nutrition play important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. Time of preparation plays important role in the purchase decision of the consumer. Price plays important role in the purchase decision of the consumer.

49

Results:From our analysis we found that From the sample of 300 respondents only 27% of the respondents are using RTE food product. The major factors affecting the decision of the consumers are health and nutrition, time of preparation and price. 57% of the consumers of the RTE food products are single, male, and belongs to age group of 20-30. 50% of the consumer who consumed RTE food products are belongs to income group below 100000 lakh. Most preferred national brand for the consumer for two factors health and nutrition and time of preparation is MTR. Ashirwad and Kohinoor scored well for health and nutrition but not scored well for time of preparation. Gits is not preferred by the consumers for both the factors. RTE food products are not competing with restaurant and eateries.

50

Recommendation: Marketers have to target young bachelor for the RTE food product. Marketers have to make proposition for RTE food product such that target segment found it healthy as well as less time consuming in preparation. Channel of distribution should be taken care so that RTE food product is easily available in near by store.

51

Limitations of the study: Time is limited to conduct the project.

We dont have latest software for the analysis.

We taken in the consideration only the national brands.

We limit our study to main course meal only.

We limit our study to Gurgaon region only.

52

Bibliography:Marketing Management By Philip Kotler, Kevin Lane Keller, Abraham Koshey and Mithileshwar Jha Marketing Research By Naresh K. Malhotra Consumer Behavior By Leon G. Schiffman and Leslie Lazar Kanuk Websites http://antya.com/antsearch.php?s=ready-to-eat&tab=images http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketing http://www.garamchai.com/ReadyToEat.htm

http://www.google.co.in/search?hl=en&q=mtr&meta

http://www.kitchensofindia.com/recipes_main_search.asp www.brandchannel.com www.mtrfoods.com www.marketingterms.com www.marketingpower.com

53

References:-

1. Consumer Behavior by Leon G. Schiffman and Leslie Lazar Kanuk (eighth edition): In this we referred the consumer decision making process from PART IV Chapter-15, attitude of consumers towards any product from PART II Chapter-8. 2. All the terms are being referred from the book Philip Kotler and Kevin Lane Keller

54

Annexure:Questionnaire

STUDY OF CONSUMER BEHAVIOR TOWARDS READY-TO-EAT FOODS Dear Sir/Madam,

Myself AJAY SHARMA, a student of ILMS(Institute of law & mgt.studies)-Sec40, is doing a survey on Consumers behavior towards ready-to-eat food/semi-processed foods. The information given by you will be kept strictly confidential and used only for academic purpose. The objective of such a research is to understand a consumers attitude towards ready-toeat / semi-processed foods and what all factors he or she considers before purchasing such products.

55

Personal Details:1.Age (yrs.):-

Below 20 31 40 51 -60
2.Gender:-

20 30 41 50 Above 60 Female 100000 300000 Above 400000 Married 3-4 7 or more

Male
3.Annual income (Rs.):-

Below 100000 300001- 400000

4.Marital Status:-

Single
5.No of Family Members:-

1-2 5-6
Residence:-

Living in own house Rented Apartment Shared Accommodation

Occupation:-

Service Student

Business Professional

56

1) The Product is easy to use------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 2) Product can easily be stored------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 3)Is it hygienic, as it contains a lot of preservatives-------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 4) Is it tasty & nutritious---------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 5) It saves cooking time & can be prepared by anyone--------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 6) You are using it for a change --------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 7) Is Product convenient to carry------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 8) The Product is well established brand------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 9) The Person having a good diet, is it sufficient for him/her--------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE

57

10) Is it Affordable/Cheap --------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 11) Low Price as compared to Restaurant ---------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 12) The Product is Charging/taking a relevant price as per brand is concerned------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 13) A low middle class man can afford it-------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 14) The Product is easily available everywhere-----In malls, In small provisional stores, at villages etc.------------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 15) Giving varieties as per states or area------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 16) Fulfilling all the needs, as shown in Promos & advertisements----- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 17) Could a Celebrity(A film star or a sportsperson who is well known to us) bring laurels to the Company or particular brand, or could enhance the sale of particular product.------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE

58

18) You go for a particular brand cause its branded or you are looking for its taste or ingredients-------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 19) Using cause of the suggestion of someone ,e.g-Shopkeeper/Friend/relative----- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 20)For selling their brand, the company is doing any kind of promotions.e.g,by giving(1-1 free),free samples any other article with it.---------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 21) You are taking Product cauuse the Packaging is attractive, It attracts you------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 22) Packaging makes it fresh after a long time also even after expiry date also,with in 15 days from date of expiry---------- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 23) If used half pack, & again repacked; Can it be used again within 10 days------ STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 24) You are looking ingredients composition while purchasing it----- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE 25) The Packaging used by the company for the brand is environmental friendly or not----- STRONGLY AGREED PARTIALLY AGREED NEUTRAL STRONGLY DISAGREE PARTIALLY DISAGREE

59

Rate the following brands on a scale of 1-5, where 5 means EXCELLENT and 1 means POOR.

Brand Name MTR Ashirwad Vetee Kohinoor Gits

Taste

Price

Packaging

Shelf Life

Ease of Use

Availability

Nutritional Value

Quantity per pack

Brand

Thank You

60

Articles on RTE food products:-

Ready-to-eat segment whets(eagerness) NRI appetite

Ratna Bhushan
New Delhi , Nov. 23 MADE in India. Sold in Sainsbury, Selfridges, Walmart and Safeway. It's fast becoming a reality. For, even as the Rs 25-crore ready-to-eat packaged foods market faces challenges back home, the category is gathering momentum overseas. From ITC's Kitchens of India and MTR Foods, to Tasty Bites Eatables and Satnam Overseas, everyone seems to be wanting a slice of the NRI's food pie. ITC Foods has already had a test run of its Kitchens of India range of ready-to-serve packaged foods in Selfridges, UK. Mr Ravi Naware, Chief Executive, ITC Foods, said, "Retailing in the UK, other European countries and the US is very much on the agenda. Next year, we plan to begin retailing in supermarkets in the UK." Or take the Rs 130-crore MTR Foods. "We plan to begin selling our ready-to-eat food range in Sainsbury, UK, within the next six months," said Mr Sadananda Maiya, Chairman & Managing Director, MTR Foods. The company's presence on the global map - at roughly 8 per cent of its sales - is currently marked by exports to the US, Canada, UK, Germany, France and Japan, among other countries. MTR has projected exports to account for 20 per cent of its sales in five years. The Pune-based Tasty Bite Eatables Ltd (TBEL) claims to be the largest-selling Indian food brand in the `natural foods' category in the US. Mr Ravi Nigam, Executive Director and President, TBEL, attributes the brand's performance in the US to "significant" investments on the distribution front. "We have decided to focus on our largest revenue generator the Ready-To-Serve (RTS) or retort packaging category," Mr Nigam added. Tasty Bite's portfolio also includes ready-to-cook (RTC) curry pastes already popular in western markets. Satnam Overseas Ltd, on the other hand, proposes to set up a rice mill in the UK. The purpose: to market its flagship brand, Kohinoor, at retail chains in Europe such as Walmart and Safeway to ensure timely supplies of products. Estimated investments in the facility are Rs 20 crore, which will be routed through Satnam Overseas' UK-based subsidiary, Indo-European Foods. The Rs 100-crore Bikanervala Foods Pvt Ltd plans to set up manufacturing units for traditional Indian sweets and ethnic snack foods in Canada and Dubai, said Mr S.S.

61

Aggarwal, the company's Managing Director. The first Bikanervala Indian fast food outlet-cum-sweet shop in the US is expected to take off in New Jersey in six to eight months. Bikanervala's manufacturing facility in Canada a joint venture with a Toronto-based NRI will involve an initial investment of about Rs 2.2 crore.According to Mr Aggarwal, setting up an overseas production base would help the company maintain freshness and enhance product shelf life Slices The of Financial India Express, in June a 25, pack 2006

So, you want to experiment with non-local cuisine and don't have the time (or patience) for a three-course gourmet meal in a speciality restaurant? There's a simpler, and more delectable solution at hand and you don't even have to venture too far from home. When you go grocery shopping next time reach out for a readyto-eat pack for your dose of pongal, jodhpuri halwa, mirch ka salan. Thanks to a change in lifestyle (nuclear families, working couples, more disposable income and less time to cook), more and more people, are opting for ready-to-eat food in a big way. According to FICCIS Food and Beverage Survey, 2006, the ready-to-eat food sector is growing by 20% annually. And that's a substantial figure of growth in the Indian food and beverage industry worth Rs 3,58 400 crore. The sheer variety thats available on supermarket shelves and your local kirana stores is mindboggling. MTR, ITC, Tasty Bite, Currie Classic and Kohinoor offer customers several ready-to-eat options in regional category to choose from: so the choice is from kharabath, palak paneer, baghare baigan,Kashmiri rajma, avial and even the evergreen dal makhni. Costing as little as Rs 25 and going up to to Rs 150 (dal Bukhara), the ready-to-eat packs are clearly here to stay. Jostling for shelf-space with economically priced read-to-eat packs are ITCs premium tins comprising: dal Bukhara, dal Dakshini, chicken Chettinad, mirch ka salan, Awadhi badam halwa . Actress Kareena Kapoor says, Earlier Id pick up dal Bukhara tins from ITC Maurya Sheraton every time I visited Delhi, now I can get it here in Mumbai. Thats convenient for me and others who want it. M Chellayan, director, the Nilgiri Dairy Farm (Nilgiris), says that with more disposable income many middle and upper middle class people are going in for ready-to-eat dishes. From gourmet cuisine like Bohri biryani to delectable desserts: everything youve wanted to sample is now available in pouches or tins : all you need to do is just heat and eat. The fare is wide: vegetarian and nonvegetarian, basic food and delectable desserts, south, western, eastern and north Indian cuisine. Moderate prices is a big plus for the

62

sector. ITC who had earlier had only a premium range of curries and sweet dishes have launched an economy range: Aashirvad with affordably priced combo packs. Traditionally Indians prefer fresh food served in homes/eateries and in the initial years there were enough reservations about food packed in alumnimum pouches that stayed on shelves for days before consumption. That phase seems to be over and the ready-to-eat market today is worth Rs 70-80 crore (discounting the bigger ready-made market comprising juices, noodles etc which together put the market cost to Rs 1,000 crore. Upbeat about the growth potential, top producers MTR, Kohinoor, Tasty Bites, IndoNissin, Currie Classic, HLL, have stepped up production, and expanded their range of products. In fact, Tasty Bites (a wholly owned subsidiary of Preferred Brands International) a USbased food company which has been marketing its Tasty Bite line of ready-to-eat Indian foods in the US since 1994) which closed shop after a poor response a decade ago, has reopened business with renewed enthusiasm. With manufacturing capabilities in three countries, Tasty Bite claims to be the largest selling brand of Indian food sold in the US and is also available in 11 countries includ ing Japan, India, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. MTR who started the ready-to-eat segment way back in 1998 is set to project Rs 500 crore sales over the next five years, riding on the wave of the ready-to-eat foods market. The company, is majority owned by the Maiya family with 52% stake, whereas the remaining equity rests with the Singapore-based fund Magnus and J.P. Morgan. Says MTR chairman and managing director P Sadanand Maiya: MTR products currently reach 1 lakh outlets across India. We have about 65% share in the ready-to-eat market. In north India, the market for us has grown 25%, while in south we have grown 50% in the last one year. With restaurant costs escalating in the US, Japan and even India (if you think premium restaurants and five-stars), gourmets have an easy option to buy ready-made packs without spending a bomb or spending too much time getting ingredients to majke them. In 1998, the ready-to-eat food market was a paltry Rs 6 crore. But by the year 2008, it is expected to touch Rs 300 crore, so theres plenty of reason to cheer for us. ITC Foods is all set to invest Rs 450 crore in the next three years (besides the estimated Rs 150 crore it has already put in) in the branded food market. As for the ready-to-eat food market, ITC has created two distinct segments the upper end catered through the Kitchens of India brand and the middle level market through the Aashirwad series. Aashirwad is available in 15,000 retail stores, while Kitchens of India is available at 7,000 outlets. If the current figures are an indication, looks like cut-heat-eat formula is all set to redefine the culinary palate of urban India.

63

Cooking made convenient

Want to try out a new dish on your family? Just snip away at covers to bring home the tastes of India

IT'S EIGHT in the evening, you're still in office, and some friends have invited themselves over for dinner. What will you do? Rush home, don the apron and rustle up something delectable? "Nah!" says Rohit, a self-confessed lover of cooking. The great stuff he churns out in the kitchen has many of his bachelor friends lining up for homemade food. What Rohit does now in moments of crisis is pick up ready-to-eat side dishes straight off the super market shelf and team them up with pre-packed parathas and rotis. For dessert, he chooses from any of the readymade ones on offer. His friends can't really make out the difference. If you're a regular super market shopper, chances are you would've noticed the number of items on offer in this segment growing by the day. Thanks to change in mindset on eating packed food and the fact that no preservatives are used to extend the shelf life, more and more people, especially working couples, are taking to ready-to-eat food in a big way. And, the variety on offer is mindboggling. Five companies, MTR, ITC, Tasty Bite, Currie Classic and Kohinoor, put together offer customers more than 25 options to choose from. The list goes like this ... The modest Pongal (how does Madras lentil rice sound?), lemon rice and sambar rice share shelf space with their North Indian and Pakistani cousins like Palace paneer, Daly Machine, Narrating Korma, China Masala (all the way from Rawalpindi), Baghare Baigan (Hyderabad), Methi Mutter Malai (from Agra, apparently concocted by Noor Jehan), Kashmiri Rajmah, Avial, Peas and mushroom curry... Phew! And, this is just part of the list.

64

Sulogena, a mother of two, says she buys these packed meals when the family wants to eat "something else". "We loved the Pindi China of Aashirwad (an ITC brand)."

A staple offering of most companies is the ubiquitous Dal Makhni, a creamy mix of various lentils, Indian spices and fragrant butter (Do I read like the menu card in a star restaurant?). And, that is the fastest moving item in most stores. These packs come in the range of Rs. 15 (for lemon rice and the like) to Rs. 40 (Palak Paneer et al). The `Buy two get one free' scheme of ITC has caught on very well with customers, store managers say. In the premium segment are ITC's tinned offerings like Dal Bukhara (from Bill Clinton's favourite restaurant at Maurya Sheraton, Delhi), Dal Dakshini and Chicken Chettinad. M. Chellayan, Director, the Nilgiri Dairy Farm (Nilgiris), says that with more disposable income on their hand, many middle and upper middle class people are going in for these dishes. S. Prakash, Senior Manager of Alankar Supermarket, agrees. "We've had to replenish our stock often," he says. Though people are open to trying out new dishes, the fact that it is pre-cooked and packed rankles some. But, one bite and they are hooked. "I opened a packet of MTR's Bisibela bhath bravely, but wondered how it would taste. I refused to believe that something cooked a month ago and packed, that too without any preservatives, would still be fresh. But, one spoon was enough to make me a convert. I now buy packed subzis when I am in the mood to eat something nice without going through the bother of cooking," says Leena, who works in the field of medical transcription. SUBHA J RAO

65

Here's

$20m,

just

don't

make

me

cook

By

Indrajit

Basu

KOLKATA - It took a while to catch on, but as the country's 15-year-old globalization process brings about rapid changes in the lifestyles of urban Indians, ready-to-eat food is fast becoming a compelling proposition. Over the past two years, the ready-to-eat packed food market has grown from an almost insignificant number to become a US$20million-revenue industry in 2004. Industry players say that, considering the current 35% growth rate, revenues in this sector can easily touch $50 million in the next three years. Take the instance of Mumbai-based Ruma Banerjee, a 40-year-old market research professional, who gets her ready-to-eat curry pastes or cooked packed meals from a grocery shop at the mall next to her office. "It's not that I do not like to cook, but with a 70-hour work week, an equally busy husband and a 10-year-old child at home, we have little time for regular cooking," she says. For Shruti Rajam, 23, an insurance-industry professional living alone in Chennai on her first job, time is not really a problem. Cooking is. Shruti never had to enter the kitchen in her life when she was with her parents. But now that she is on her own, stuffing her kitchen cabinet with ready-made food seems to be the obvious option. "It's cool," she says, "I have become an expert at this. Even my friends think I am a great cook." Ruma and Shruti are part of a rapidly growing tribe of urban Indians who are increasingly shunning the painstaking job of chopping, slicing, dicing and mixing the right ingredients, to simply picking up a pair of scissors and snipping open a pack of a two-minute everyday Indian meal. Indeed, ready-made India curries that were unheard of even a few years back occupy the pride of place in Indian kitchens now. Brands such asITC Aashirwad, Kitchens of India, MTR Food, Tasty Bites and Currie Classic are not only gaining acceptance in double-income nuclear families all over India, but are also spreading rapidly globally. "Indian lifestyle is undergoing a massive socio-economic change, which is also being reflected in food habits," says Ravi Naware, divisional chief executive of ITC Foods, a wing of ITC Ltd, one of India's largest fast-moving consumer-goods company. "In urban India, where time is more important than money, it's tough to return from office and put the hours into cooking that a typical Indian meal demands. Also, young Indians have not picked up the cooking skills from their parents, mostly because they are simply not interested." J Suresh, chief executive officer (CEO) and executive director of MTR Foods that claims to be the largest player in the segment with over 65% market share, adds that ready-made food is not considered extravagant expense anymore. "Many Indian households with little time and inclination to spend in the kitchen are adopting this as a necessity. Moreover, with disposable income going up as families become more doubleincome and salaries going up, people don't mind spending on something that will save them the sweat in kitchen," he says.

66

The quick-fix food concept is not really new in India, it has only picked up of late. It was launched over a decade ago in different forms but failed to take off primarily because of a general preference for freshly cooked food. And also, as Naware says, "because retail outlets in India lacked the adequate refrigeration facilities". With the availability of a new technology called Retort - that packs cooked food in a four-layer package, which is then heated to 120 degrees Celsius to kill all living organisms, thereby ensuring freshness through its much longer shelf-life - the ready-to-eat food concept has become far more acceptable." Besides, says Suresh of MTR Foods, all ready-made food makers have adopted Hazard Analysis Control Point Certification from the British Standard Laboratory, which signifies that factories making such products follow strict food and safety norms. Nevertheless, all ready-made food makers say the primary driving force behind the growth of this sector is the changing Indian mindset toward food. Convenience is the new buzzword. "There was a time when eating out was a luxury," says Amit Jatia, managing director of McDonalds India. "Not any more. Likewise, an urban Indian no longer hesitates to pick up a phone and order meal from a neighborhood restaurant or pick up a ready-to-eat meal from the next-door store." According to AC Neilsen ORG MARG, a top market research outfit, it is not just ready-to-eat food that is growing at a scorching pace, but "eating habits are changing rapidly and fast-food consumption is now a part of everyday life...Almost a third of urban Indians now claim to opt for fast food, even for breakfast. Dinner, however, remains the most-preferred occasion for eating fast food," says Sarang Panchal, executive director of AC Neilsen. According to the findings of the latest online survey from AC Nielsen, urban Indians are among the top 10 most-frequent consumers of fast food across the globe. The survey finds that a huge 71% of urban Indians consume food from take-away restaurants once a month. Some 37% of the adult Indian population does so at least once a week. This makes India one of the top 10 countries among the 28 surveyed in terms of frequency of fast-food consumption. "The incidence of fast food consumption in urban India is accelerating much faster than most people anticipated," says Panchal. "Contrary to the belief that a reliance on traditional and home-made preparation may hinder the growth of fast food, changing lifestyle has altered the view toward out-of-home meals. A willingness to spend and, most importantly, the urban Indian acquiring a more global palate has catalyzed consumption." Among the international fast food chains and local operators, McDonald's is the most popular of all take-away options. Nonetheless, selling fast food and ready-made food is not exactly easy, say the players, especially for foreign players, as Domino's Pizza India CEO Arvind Nair discovered. Which is why, he says, "Imported fast food chains were quick to adapt to Indian tastes and even the regional variations. There are extensive vegetarian menus, for example, and emphasis on the kind of meats that Indians have no objection to," says Nair.

67

Indians' discerning taste buds is a big reason why industry experts like Naware and Suresh feel that foreign players would find little opportunity in this new fad "unless it is ready to tie up with a local player". However, for foreign players, India could be a good sourcing point for the overseas markets. "The growth of ready-made food and curry pastes has also been scorching in overseas markets," says Naware. "The potential for exports are very good. We are experiencing explosive demand for ready-made Indian food from overseas markets like the US, the UK, Canada and Europe. This demand is not only generated by the non-resident Indian community but also by the local populations that are increasingly getting exposed to Indian cuisine through Indians living there, and also through their travels. I came across a projection recently that says by 2020, no American will cook starting from basic ingredients all the way. They will either use ready-to-cook or ready-to-eat food". India exported about $7 million worth readymade Indian food in 2004, which is growing at around 20% a year. According to industry insiders, the opportunity for foreign players in the country's fast food segment is huge. Nair of Domino's Pizza says although Indians' penchant for spicy food has resulted in an Indian-Chinese cuisine that is quite unknown in Sichuan province or Guanzhou, the snowballing retail revolution aimed at India's 300-million-strong middle class has created a natural habitat for imported fast food. "Down the road, I can see not only pizzas and burgers and fizzy drink but also branded sushi, Vietnamese soup, Lebanese kebabs and Thai food-in-bowls to join our Mughlai and dosa," says Nair. And according to Naware, yet another untapped segment that could be utilized by foreign players through their marketing prowess are the smaller towns and suburbs of India. Despite its scorching growth, the concept of ready-to-eat and fast food are still restricted to the six larger Indian cities and a few smaller ones while a huge section of the country's billion-plus population is still not exposed to it. "That has happened because marketing ready-made and fast foods in the rest of India requires huge wherewithal that Indian companies do not have. This is where foreign players can excel," says Naware. Indrajit Basu is a Kolkata-based equity-analyst-turned-journalist with more than 12 years of experience in business/finance and technology journalism. Besides writing for Asia Times Online, he also writes for US-based publications, as well as IT companies. (Copyright 2005 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact us for information on sales, syndication and republishing.)

68