• Asia Marketing Journal
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• 제21권4호
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• pp.25-43
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• 2020

Although ready meals have recently increased their market share in the Korean food industry, a literature review found that the use of ready meals triggers feelings of guilt in homemakers. Such guilt arises as a result of several factors apparently related to consumers' health. Consequently, levels of guilt might be expected to vary depending on consumers' perceived health locus. The present study aims to examine (a) how health locus affects guilty feelings about ready-meal consumption, (b) how the effect varies in relation to the consumption of different types of ready meal, and (c) the relationship between consumers' guilty feelings and willingness to buy ready meals. Three dimensions of health locus of control (HLC) -internal HLC (IHLC), powerful-others HLC (PHLC), and chance HLC (CHLC)- were presumed to influence consumers' feelings of guilt in association with ready meals. Data were collected via an online survey, and participants were randomly assigned to either of two groups: one group was instructed to heat meals in a microwave (ready-to-heat [RTH] group, n=104) and the other cooked using a pan with additional ingredients (ready-to-cook [RTC] group, n=101). The study found that guilty feelings about consuming RTH meals increased in line with increased external HLCs, namely, PHLC and CHLC. For the RTC group, guilt increased in line with increased PHLC. IHLC had no significant effect on guilty feelings in either group. Willingness to buy ready meals decreased for both groups as consumers' feelings of guilt increased. Even RTC meals, which require more time and energy in food preparation, did not reduce guilty feelings among consumers with higher PHLC. RTC meals are preferable for consumers with higher CHLC, since their sense of greater involvement in the cooking process alleviates their feelings of guilt. Cooking with already prepared and uncooked ingredients brought fun and joy, both for the participants and their significant others. This interpretation may be developed into a strategic plan by ready-meal producers to strengthen their marketing strategy.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• 제4권4호
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• pp.332-338
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• 2010

The purpose of this study was to examine consumers' behaviors toward ready-to-eat foods and to develop ready-to-eat food market segmentation in Korea. The food-related lifestyle and purchase behaviors of ready-to-eat foods were evaluated using 410 ready-to-eat food consumers in the Republic of Korea. Four factors were extracted by exploratory factor analysis (health-orientation, taste-orientation, convenience-orientation, and tradition-orientation) to explain the ready-to eat food consumers' food-related lifestyles. The results of cluster analysis indicated that "tradition seekers" and "convenience seekers" should be regarded as the target segments. Chi-square tests and t-tests of the subdivided groups showed there were significant differences across marital status, education level, family type, eating-out expenditure, place of purchase, and reason for purchase. In conclusion, the tradition seekers consumed more ready-to-eat foods from discount marts or specialty stores and ate them between meals more often than the convenience seekers. In contrast, the convenience seekers purchased more ready-to-eat foods at convenience stores and ate them as meals more often than the tradition seekers. These findings suggest that ready-to-eat food market segmentation based on food-related lifestyles can be applied to develop proper marketing strategies.

• 대한지역사회영양학회지
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• 제17권1호
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• pp.81-90
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• 2012

This study is to research the use and the demand of the elderly generation that pursue economic ability and active lifestyle. The composition of the meals were "homemade meals" 65.3%, "homemade & convenience meals" 26.7% overall. For the "never miss a meal" category, 70-74 years old was 48.3%, over 80 years old was 60.0%. The elderly under 70 years old showed a high frequency in the use of alternative meals (p < 0.05) and the elderly with higher education used the alternative meals more frequently (p < 0.01). The rice-cakes, bread, tuna cans, Korean side-dishes, beverages, meat, cup-noodles and seafood as alternative meals are in the order of most frequency. Also, 96.0%, 59.0% and 46.5% of the elderly had experience in using "Ready to eat (RTE)", "Ready to heat (RTH)" and "Ready to cook (RTC)". The oldest group surveyed, the elderly at the age of 80 years old and above showed lower preference for "completely cooked state" but showed highest results in the "half-cooked state". This shows the difference between people's perception and the behavior that showed high frequency of 96.0% in the experience with "RTE". This can be inferred that the elderly needs the development of convenience food that is moderately packaged according to the newer lifestyle where the elderly live independent from their children. Moreover, there is a higher demand in the healthy convenience food, which means that there is a need for development in the quality of the convenience food that will allow more faith in convenience food by the elderly.

• 유통과학연구
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• 제21권10호
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• pp.31-38
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• 2023

Purpose: Each emergency event has several aspects of impact, including the effects on lives, economy, and the environment. Additionally, the damage to infrastructure systems can contribute to food shortages during a disaster. Research design, data and methodology: This research aims to study ready-to-eat food innovations that influence the consumer buying behavior of emergency victims and to develop ready-to-eat meal innovations to help emergency victims with an emphasis on research and innovation of Meals Ready-to-Eat (MREs). Results: A questionnaire was employed to collect the data from people living in Pak Kret Municipality, Nonthaburi Province. Pak Kret Municipality is administered under five subdistricts, covering 34 villages in Pak Kret, Bang Phut, Ban Mai, Bang Talat, and Khlong Kluea. Multiple correlation and multiple regression techniques were used to analyze the data. The study revealed that integrated marketing communication, unique proposition, customer orientation, and product variety influenced consumer buying behavior of MREs to help emergency victims at a statistically significance level of 0.05. Conclusions: The results indicate that, in emergency situations, MREs play a crucial role. When infrastructure and essential services are disrupted, MREs are a convenient and long-lasting option for providing timely assistance during emergencies.

• 가족자원경영과 정책
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• 제2권2호
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• pp.105-118
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• 1998

The purpose of this study was to compare the performance mode of housework related to daily meals. The data for 214 Korean couples living in Seoul and 136 Japanese Couples in Tokyo were collected using structured questionnaires and time diaries. The performance mode of housework were analyzed according to the employment status of wives. The results were as follows; Generally Koreans and Japanese wives had similar patterns in the time use of meals preparation and dish washing. In both nations Husbands seldom participated meals preparation, wives did most part of the work. But Japanese husbands of full-time employed wives spent more time on meals preparation than their Korean counterparts did. Korean wives received more help from other family members and paid labor, on the contrary Japanese wives purchased more ready-made goods for food preparation.

• 미생물학회지
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• 제42권4호
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• pp.265-270
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• 2006

본 연구에서는 2005년 11월부터 2006년 3월 초까지 497개의 초밥, 김밥, 샌드위치 등의 식사대용 식품 검체를 수거하여 식품공전을 토대로 식사대용 식품에서 유래되는 미생물학적 인 오염도를 조사하고, 현대 사회에서 항생제 사용의 오남용으로 항생제 내성이 심각한 상황을고려하여 분리된 균에 대한 항생제 감수성 양상에 대하여 알아보고자 하였다. 수거된 검체를 실험한 결과 김밥에서 4개(1.4%)의 Escherichia coli가 분리되었고, 초밥, 샌드위치 등에서는 분리되지 앓았다. 또한 김밥에서 12개(4.4%), 초밥에서 8개(5.4%), 샌드위치에서 2개(4.3%)로 총22개(4.4%)의 Staphylococcus aureus가 분리되었다. 식사대용 식품에서 분리된 26개의 균주로 National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS)의 기준에 의거하여 vancomycin, teicoplanin, gentamycin, cipro-floxacin, synercid, cefotaxime, lincomycin, meropenem, cefazolin, amoxicillin-clavulanic acid으로 총 10개의 항생제를 사용하여 E. coli와 S. aureus의 항생제 감수성 양상을 파악해 보고자 하였다. 실험 결과 식사대용 식품에서 분리된 E. coli 4균주의 항생제 감수성 양상은 그람 음성균 치료에 주로 사용되는 항생제인 gentamycin, ciprofloxacin, cefotaxine, meropenem, cefazolin에 대해서는 감수성이 높다고 판단되었으나 amoxicillin-clavulanic acid에 대해서는 내성을 나타내었고, S. aureus의 항생제 감수성은 비교적 높다고 판단되었다.

• 대한영양사협회학술지
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• 제25권4호
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• pp.269-280
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• 2019

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between HMR use and eating habits in young Korean adults. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 575 adults (232 men, 343 women) in their 20s and 30s in Korea. Their use of HMRs (classified as ready-to-eat, ready-to-cook, and fresh convenience foods) and eating habits were surveyed. The main reasons for HMR use by men and women were convenience (54.7%, 64.4%) and promptness (24.2%, 24.2%), respectively. The most frequent place for HMR purchase was a convenience store (74.1% and 65.0%, respectively). Regarding the frequency of HMR use, 1~2 times a week was the highest for ready-to-eat (40.9%) and ready-to-cook (30.1%), while no eating was the highest for fresh convenience foods (41.0%). HMR preference was the highest (3.8 out of 5 on a 5-point scale) for ready-to-eat, followed by ready-to-cook (3.3 points) and fresh convenience foods (3.3 points). The use frequency and preference of total HMRs, ready-to-eat foods, and ready-to-eat foods were positively correlated with unfavorable eating habits, including unbalanced eating, overeating, salty eating, spicy eating, skipping, and irregular meals. However, fresh convenience foods showed negative correlations with unbalanced eating, overeating, and salty eating. The use frequency and preference of total HMRs, ready-to-eat foods, and ready-to-cook foods were positively correlated with undesirable eating habits. However, fresh convenience food showed a negative correlation with eating habits such as unbalanced, overeating, and salty eating. These results should be considered for favorable food production and consumer guidance to promote healthy food choices.

• 한국식품조리과학회지
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• 제24권6호
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• pp.788-800
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• 2008

This study was executed in order to analyze the purchasing practices, preferences, and satisfaction of consumers purchasing ready-to-eat foods. The study was executed from the $20\;May{\sim}30\;June$ 2007 in the Daegu and Gyeongsangbuk-do area. Questionnaires were distributed among 480 people. Of these, 410 questionnaires were collected and applied to a statistical analysis. Statistical analyses were conducted using the SPSS package program (version 14.0 for windows). The results of the statistical analyses were as follows. 42.4% males and 57.6% females participated in this study. The biggest motivation behind the purchase of ready-to-eat foods was convenience, 51.0%. The most common venues where these foods were purchased were supermarkets or discount marts, 67.6%. The ratio of substituting ready-to-eat foods for meals was 70.5%. The consumption practices of ready-to-eat foods of the consumers according to purchase place illustrated significant differences in the average expense per person each time (p<0.01), co-consumer (p<0.001), and age (p<0.05). The purchase preference was high with kimbaps (73.4%), hamburgers (29.8%), sushis (29.0%), and sandwiches (27.9%). Unmarried individuals showed a significantly higher overall liking and satisfaction for ready-to-eat foods than married individuals (p<0.001). Individuals living without a family was significantly higher overall liking and satisfaction than individuals living with a family (p<0.05). Individuals who spent an average of 10,000 won per time showed a significantly higher overall liking and satisfaction than those who spent below 10,000 won per time (p<0.05). In the presence of a friend as a co-consumer of ready-to-eat foods, satisfaction was significantly high (p<0.01). Consumers who purchased ready-to-eat foods at meal times, showed a significantly higher overall liking, compared to those who purchased such food products in between meal times (p<0.01). The preference and satisfaction degree of the consumer must be reflected by product development, quality improvement and marketing plan establishment.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제34권2호
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• pp.349-357
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• 2024

Foodborne pathogens, like Listeria monocytogenes, continue to inflict substantial financial losses on the food industry. Various methods for detecting Listeria in food have been developed and numerous studies have been conducted to compare the different methods. But, in recent years, new Listeria species have been identified, and currently the genus comprises 26 species. Therefore, it would be a more accurate approach to re-evaluate existing detection methods by considering new species. The present investigation involved the analysis of 42 ready-to-eat (RTE) foods, encompassing a variety of food categories, such as mezes, salads, dairy products, and meat products, with the aim of ascertaining the presence of Listeria. Among the traditional culture-dependent reference methods, the ISO 11290 method was preferred. The process of strain identification was conducted with the API Identification System. Furthermore, to ascertain the existence of L. monocytogenes and Listeria spp., the samples underwent additional analysis employing the VIDAS Immunoassay System, ELISA, and RT-PCR methodologies. Thus, four alternative approaches were employed in this study to compare not only the different methods used to determine Listeria while taking into account the newly identified Listeria species, but also to assess the compliance of retail RTE food items with microbiological criteria pertaining to the genus Listeria. Based on the conducted analyses, L. monocytogenes was conclusively determined to be present in one sample. The presence of Listeria spp. was detected in 30.9% of the samples, specifically in Turkish cig kofte, sliced salami, and salads.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제14권4호
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• pp.664-669
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• 2004

국민 다소비 식품인 생선회, 패류 등의 횟감류 118건, 김밥, 햄버거 등의 도시락류 82건 및 기타 ready-to-eat(RTE) 식품 40건, 총 240건을 대상으로 Bacillus cereus의 오염실태를 조사한 결과, 횟감류 16건(13.6%), 도시락류 17건(20.7%), 기타 RTE 식품에서 3건(7.5%), 총 36건(15.0%)에서 B. cereus가 검출되었다. B. cereus의 검출은 polymyxin B를 첨가한 TSB배지를 사용한 증균배양 후, MYP agar에서 전형적인 집락을 선별하였으며, 선별된 균주들을 대상으로 그람염색, oxidase test, 혈액한천배지에서의 rhizoid growth, $\beta$-용혈성 유ㆍ무등을 통해 추정 균주들을 분리하였다. API 50CHB/20E system을 통한 생화학적 분석과 motility시험 등을 행하여 최종적으로 B. cereus로서 동정ㆍ확인하였다. 확인된 36균주 중 28균주(77.8%)가 BCET-RPLA 시험을 통해 BHI broth에서 설사형 독소를 생성하는 것으로 나타났다. 아울러 항생제 감수성 시험 결과 분리균들은 ampicillin (100%), penicillin G (100%) 및 rifampicin (69.5%)에 내성을 보였으며, gentamicin (100%), vancomycin (100%), bacitracin (86.1%), chloram-phenicol (97.2%), erythromycin (69.4%), kanamycin (86.1%) 및 streptomycin (97.2%)에 감수성을 나타내었다. B. cereus의 생육은 온도와 시간에 밀접한 관련성을 보였는데, 냉장온도인 1$0^{\circ}C$이하에서는 균의 생육이 상당히 저해된 반면, 2$0^{\circ}C$ 및 3$0^{\circ}C$에 보관시에는 급격한 증식을 보여 기온이 상승하는 하절기에 특히 많은 주의가 필요하다고 판단되었다.