Core Insights - The prepared food industry is rapidly developing due to policy support, industrialization of catering, and the rise of the "lazy economy" [2] - The industry faces challenges such as product homogenization, food safety control, and ensuring consumer rights [2] - There is a lack of a unified national standard system for prepared foods, leading to inconsistent product quality and chaotic competition [2] Market Overview - The B-end market focuses on "cost reduction and efficiency" and "standardization," while the C-end market emphasizes "convenience and taste" [2] - The B-end market accounts for approximately 60%-70% of the overall market structure, while the C-end market is expected to experience explosive growth [2] - The Chinese prepared food market is projected to reach 485 billion yuan in 2024, with a year-on-year growth of 33.8% [2][24] - The industry is characterized by significant regional features and low concentration, with many small and weak players [2][24] Industry Development Stages - The development of the prepared food industry can be divided into three stages: the embryonic stage, the rapid development of the B-end, and the explosive demand of the C-end [14] - The pandemic in 2020 acted as a catalyst for the rapid growth of the prepared food industry, shifting focus from B-end to C-end markets [18] Industry Structure - The prepared food industry has a complete supply chain, with upstream raw material suppliers, midstream production and processing, and downstream consumption markets [20] - The market is divided into B-end (restaurants, catering) and C-end (individual consumers) sales channels [20] Competitive Landscape - The industry is highly fragmented with around 28,000 related companies, and most players are small and weak [43] - Major participants include professional prepared food companies, frozen food companies, catering enterprises, and fresh e-commerce platforms [43] Key Players - Anjiu Food focuses on frozen food and has developed a brand for prepared foods, achieving revenue of 15.127 billion yuan in 2024 [48][49] - Weizhi Xiang is a significant player with over 2,000 stores and a diverse product line, achieving revenue of 672 million yuan in 2024 [50] - Guolian Aquatic Products specializes in aquatic foods and has a comprehensive marketing network, achieving revenue of 3.409 billion yuan in 2024 [51]