Dinnertime in Australia is closely linked to stress, guilt and disagreements, according to the Australian CEO and founder of global meal kit company HelloFresh Tom Rutledge.
This insight, and many more, were drawn from the findings of a survey just conducted by the company.
While Australians are just as busy as ever, according to Rutledge, a former MasterChef contestant, four in five consumers think that the food media, and reality cooking shows in particular, has created unrealistic expectations for the home-cooked meal.
As a result, more than two in three Australians said they felt too busy to find meals that their whole family will enjoy, and that nearly a third of Australians reported feeling guilty about cooking the same meals week after week, according to the survey.
HelloFresh was the first to launch the meal kit concept in Australia back in 2012, and each week the company delivers boxes of fresh produce and accompanying recipes to consumers’ doors.
Many new entrants have since moved into the meal kit category, and although Rutledge views the competition in a positive light, seeing it as a “validation of [their] concept”, he said that HelloFresh intends to differentiate itself from the crowd through the use of these sorts of consumer insights.
The company also plans to compete on the basis of sustainability and efficiency, consumer issues that were also identified in the survey.
Because the HelloFresh box is not a grocery box, but an ingredients box, customers only receive exactly what they need for their weekly meals, reducing food waste.
Moreover, HelloFresh claims to reduce waste in the food chain by up to 40 per cent through the use of direct sourcing and accelerated supply chains. This means the produce takes fewer stops before getting to the kitchen table, meaning it is less likely to perish in transit.
Also, the company does not order a product 'before it has a home', before it has a customer expecting it, according to Rutledge.
Finally, by bringing variety into the Australian household, services like HelloFresh can also help reduce all the guilt and stress commonly associated with meal planning, Rutledge said.
