Manufacturers and retailers need to think outside the ready meal category and more about meal management to help simplify people's lives and food choices. According to the latest IGD report, Meal Solutions ­ Simplifying Food Choice, giving consumers new concepts in meal solutions could be the next stage of category management for the industry. Anna Dawson, IGD's consumer research programme manager, said meal solutions were no longer just about home meal replacements and serveover meals, but signalled a new way of thinking. "IGD research shows people are getting stuck in a rut. The industry needs to give them inspiration. For a start it's about grouping foods from around the store together." Dawson said consumers did not feel patronised by recipes and wanted pictures of the end result on packets, food demos and taste tests. According to the IGD, the four main meal solutions categories are: ready to make (raw ingredients); ready to prepare (pasta and sauces); ready to heat (ready meals); and ready to eat (serveover takeaways). Dawson predicted growth in the ready to make and ready to prepare categories. "This offers a real opportunity for primary produce to reinvigorate itself and give added value." She predicted that the traditional image of home cooked food as steak and kidney pie would soon include meals such as stir-fry. Single men were the main buyers of ready to heat and eat foods, but Dawson said this would change along with the "Jamie Oliver effect", with men more prepared to cook. Conversely, more women would start buying ready meals. Simon Ratcliff, director of branding and design consultancy Corporate Edge, said in the future people would pay a premium for products which gave them back time. He suggested making products more bespoke and added that too much choice could be self defeating. "If you haven't got time to cook, you haven't got time to look at hundreds of things in a fixture. You need edited highlights." {{NEWS }}