What is behind the term, and what should be considered when shopping and eating consciously? Regular consumption of processed and ready-to-eat products has a reputation for being unhealthy and causing body fat to steadily increase. However, these statements should be viewed with more nuance, as there are certainly ways to use convenience food sensibly. This requires paying attention to certain things and implementing them consciously.
What is convenience food?
The English term can be understood in German as "convenient food". It includes pre-prepared foods at various stages of processing, which are described in more detail in the next section1.
The purpose of convenience food is to save consumers time and effort in food preparation. This trend has gained increasing importance over the past few years, as more people in the general population are employed and, in particular, more women are entering the professional world, thus having less time and motivation for food preparation. Convenient food appeals to a wide target group: singles, working professionals, busy consumers, but also health-conscious consumers who want to quickly prepare something from pre-prepared vegetables and salads2.
Different processing stages:
Convenience food is divided into 5 different processing stages, which are illustrated in the following table:
|
Convenience Stage |
Description |
Examples |
Percentage of processing |
|
Stage I Kitchen-ready |
Still needs to be prepared before cooking |
Vegetables & fruit, washed/peeled |
Approx. 15% |
|
Stage II |
Only needs to be cooked |
Cut & washed vegetables, marinated meat, |
Approx. 30% |
|
Stage III Ready to mix |
Partially prepared: Prepared & cooked, only needs to be reheated or mixed |
Instant mashed potato powder, |
Approx. 50% |
|
Stage IV Ready to reheat |
Only needs to be put in the oven or microwave |
Canned: |
Approx. 85% |
|
Stage V Ready to eat |
Fully prepared meals that can be eaten immediately |
Bread & baked goods, |
Approx. 100% |
Problems with convenience food – ecological, economic and health-related
From an ecological perspective, processed products should be viewed critically in many respects, as their energy consumption is often considerably higher than that of completely natural foods. This insight takes into account the entire value chain.
However, a lot of packaging material is used for partially ready-to-eat meals, as well as for portioned products that still need to be prepared. Plastic, cardboard, glass and aluminum are the most commonly used materials. Even though some of it can be recycled and wood is a renewable raw material, every gram of packaging incurs a considerable energy cost throughout its life cycle – from production to the waste it generates. It is no secret that packaging materials should therefore be reduced as much as possible. Stages IV and V are particularly environmentally damaging here5. In addition, there is the energy consumption of frozen products4.
From a personal economic perspective, convenience food should also be examined more closely: Many products – especially ready meals – are many times more expensive than if they had been prepared yourself. Portioned rice pouches, for example, can sometimes cost three times as much as the conventional price per kilogram. Consumers also have to pay a premium for packaged and cut fruit or vegetables1.
Furthermore, processed foods are often problematic for health. This is partly because many micronutrients (vitamins & trace elements), antioxidants and fiber are removed during the processing. On the other hand, ready meals in particular contain a lot of sugar, salt and trans fats, which are produced from cheap plant oils during industrial processing. In addition, there are artificial additives such as fillers, binders and preservatives4.
Potential allergens such as cow's milk, gluten and soy are also frequently present. Many of these ingredients have a major impact on gut health and thus on the entire body. The consequences include short-term or chronic inflammation and an increase in body fat6.
Advantages of convenience food - time-saving and uncomplicated
Convenience food products make everyday life easier – as the German translation already reveals: For very busy working professionals, it is a great relief to quickly pick up something ready to eat at the supermarket without having to wait like in a restaurant1. In addition, there is hardly any need for basic ingredients such as spices, vinegar, oil or mustard. This is very helpful for people who often eat on the go or at the office4.
Since some people lack cooking ideas or even basic cooking skills, convenience food is a good alternative to avoid going to a restaurant every day. It is also suitable from a hygiene and shelf-life perspective: Frozen products and canned foods can sometimes last for years, and the risk of food contaminated with bacteria or pathogens is very low4.
Convenience food is also a great everyday aid for older or ill people.
Even though this may initially seem contradictory to the arguments about the problems of convenience food mentioned in the previous section, the nutrients in frozen products can also be mentioned here: Vegetables and fruit that are freshly harvested, raw, or only briefly blanched and frozen without any additives usually have a higher nutritional value than fresh produce in the supermarket. This is due to the longer transport and storage of fruit and vegetables, during which important micronutrients can be lost. Frozen products are often actually cheaper too. Therefore, a distinction must also be made within the different convenience stages4.
Conclusion: Shop consciously and combine convenience food with natural products
Engaging with the topic creates awareness, allowing you to shop mindfully and design your purchases so that time is still saved and the budget is not overly strained. The following points make shopping decisions easier:
- Look for natural and health-safe ingredients.
Note: If the names of the ingredients on the packaging are barely legible, contain E numbers, palm oil, hydrogenated fats, additional sugar (which has many names: fructose, maltodextrin, agave syrup, fruit sugar, galactose, lactose, dextrose, sucrose, etc.), gluten/wheat, milk powder, or soy, then an alternative product should be considered.
- Organic berries and fresh vegetables, fish, or meat from the freezer are a good choice, provided no additional sugar or other ingredients have been added.
- Keep it simple:
Even for an uncomplicated healthy lunch or snack that contains no industrially processed ingredients, something can be quickly put together at the supermarket or, ideally, at a health food store: How about a portion of natural almonds/nuts with a few fresh berries as a snack? Or nut butter that can be dipped with two carrots? For lunch, a ready-made mixed salad could be combined with vinegar, oil, and salt, along with rice cakes with beef ham from the deli counter.
- Ask yourself whether you really save time by cooking rice in a pouch, or whether portioning it yourself requires less money and the extra minute can be tolerated.
- Consciously choose products that require little packaging material and recycle waste as much as possible.
Combine convenience food with uncomplicated cooking
Food preparing, a term that is used a lot among athletes or in the bodybuilding scene, can be adapted and integrated into everyday life by everyone in their own way. Preparing your food for several meals in advance, ideally alternating with your partner or friends, saves time and helps counteract the problems mentioned with convenience food, for example with the following dish:
Sautéing a large portion of frozen vegetables in butter with fresh herbs and spices, adding a lot of quinoa, millet, or rice, and frying some chicken according to your needs takes between 30 and 45 minutes on a Sunday evening. With an appropriate quantity, you can prepare 6 meals in advance, three for your partner and 3 for yourself. If you prepare another meal for both of you in this timeframe, you both already have 6 prepared, delicious, and healthy meals for the week. It is that simple: #keepitsimple
Literature
1 Städeli, Ruth (2017): Ernährung und Gesundheit – Convenience Food. Basel: FHNW PH SekI -Professur für Gesundheit und Hauswirtschaft. FW HW 1.2 Woche 5.
2 Schreiner, Prof. Dr. Monika (2009): Die Rolle des Verbrauchers in der Wertschöpfungskette. Landbauforschung: Sonderheft 330. S. 102-103.
3 Höhn, Jakob: Convenience Food. In: Alnatura Magazin online. [https://www.alnatura.de/de-de/magazin/kultur-und-gesellschaft/gesellschaft/kunden-fuer-kunden-pro-contra-convenience; 08.08.19]
4 SGE (2008): Convenience Food. Bern: Schweizerische Gesellschaft für Ernährung. S. 1-5.
5 Alnatura: Convenience Food. [https://www.alnatura.de/de-de/magazin/kultur-und-gesellschaft/gesellschaft/kunden-fuer-kunden-pro-contra-convenience; 14.08.19]
6 Axt-Gadermann, Dr. Prof. Michaela (2015): Schlank mit Darm – Mit der richtigen Darmflora zum Wunschgewicht. München: Südwest Verlag.