Russian ready meal market could double by 2030, reach 2.7 trln rubles - Russian Agricultural Bank

VLADIVOSTOK. Sept 2 (Interfax) - The Russian ready meal market is the second fastest-growing food category, and it could approximately double compared to 2025 and reach 2.7 trillion rubles by 2030, the managing director of the Large Business Department at Russian Agricultural Bank Kirill Kostyna said, citing expert estimates.

"The Russian ready meal market is in a phase of active growth. In 2019-2024, ready meal sales in Russia grew 3.3 times, from 347 billion rubles to 1.1 trillion rubles. At the same time, the segment grew another 18% in 2025. This is the most dynamically developing category after baked goods in retail chains," Kostyna said at a session held as part of the Eastern Economic Forum.

However, the Russian market still lags behind foreign markets in terms of penetration into sales channels, he said. "For example, the share of ready meals in Russia in these channels is only 6.5%, while in the U.S. it is 24.5%, in Japan it is 19%, in China it is 18.5% and in Germany it is 16.3%. This means that our ready meal market has significant growth potential," he said.

Federal retail is the key driver of growth in this market, with the largest chains planning to develop or already developing their own production, he said.

Speaking about the ready meal market, primarily fish-based, in the Far East, Kostyna said that the region's potential is significant, but it is far from being fully realized. "The Far Eastern Federal District leads among macro-regions in terms of revenue growth for ready meal producers. At the same time, it accounts for only 3% of the total revenue of such producers, with 70% concentrated in the center," he said. "The region also has high household spending on public catering, which shows the presence of demand for convenient food formats and the opportunity to replace the more expensive restaurant segment and fast food with quality ready meals from retail chains."