Most people know the feeling of standing in the supermarket, completely bereft of ideas for what they could make for dinner that night. Recognizing this universal problem and filling the gap in the market (and people's brains), the emergence of companies selling meal kits has really grown since around 2007/2008 when two Swedish companies started providing the service. It wasn't until 2012 that the idea was significantly introduced to the U.S. market, when Blue Apron, Hello Fresh and Plated began operations.
According to Statista's Global Consumer Survey, the convenience of receiving the perfect type and amount of ingredients combined with clear to follow instructions has been adopted by 9 percent of U.S. adults in 2022. South Korea however, has seen far greater uptake, with 19 percent saying they had ordered a meal kit online in the last 12 months. Italy, a traditional bastion of good home cooking, has yet to see the advantages of meal kits in any significant way, with just 5 percent saying they have ordered one recently.
