Cool sales, hot demand
Frozen foods are thriving in Ireland, offering affordable, healthy options while helping cut household food waste. Ryan Brennan reports
Print19 February 2026
The frozen food aisle is a top choice for healthy, budget-friendly options and a key player in combating food waste in Ireland. Amid tight budgets, leading brands succeed by offering high-quality freshness at affordable prices. Recognising that frozen foods are rarely impulse buys, retailers focus on balancing affordability with premium options.
Frozen products are also benefiting from broader consumer trends in Ireland, where value, convenience, and health are shaping purchase decisions, a dynamic reflected across staple food categories. Euromonitor data highlights that as price inflation and shifting lifestyle priorities drive demand, value sales in food categories, including frozen formats, are expected to rise, with convenience and quality remaining key competitive levers for retailers and suppliers.
Online interest in frozen groceries is increasing too, with the Irish frozen food eCommerce market projected to reach around US$21 million by 2025, and continued growth forecast through 2029, reflecting rising demand for easy, affordable meal solutions.
For manufacturers and retailers alike, this means emphasising clear value propositions, innovation around nutrition and flavour, and merchandising that positions frozen foods as both a smart everyday choice and a strategic way to reduce household food waste.
Extra crispy, fluffy potatoes and perfect in the air fryer
Green Isle French fries Extra Crispy Air Fryer or Oven
Green Isle Crinkle chips Extra Crispy Air Fryer or Oven
Driven by extensive consumer research, Green Isle discovered that today’s shoppers are looking for a superior eating experience when it comes to frozen chips. Consumers want a smoother, softer potato coupled with a crunchier, crisper exterior – and Green Isle has answered the call with its Extra Crispy Range.
The Extra Crispy range gives consumers the ultimate extra crispy chip experience, the perfect addition to any family meal. You can choose from Extra Crispy French Fries or Extra Crispy Crinkle chips. They are made from carefully selected potatoes and prepared in sunflower oil. They are perfect in the air fryer, whether you’re enjoying them with your favourite meal or serving them as a snack.
Green Isle ambassador Derval O’ Rourke commented: “My family and friends love getting together when there’s Extra Crispy French Fries or Extra Crispy Crinkle chips for dinner. Extra crispy, fluffy potatoes, perfect in the air fryer. They’re a win-win.
Mairéad Walsh, marketing manager, commented: “We listened to what consumers really wanted from their chips: a more satisfying, restaurant-quality, deliciously extra crispy chip, using breakthrough technology, our new Extra Crispy range ensures that your chips stay deliciously crispy long after they come out of the oven or air fryer.”
The two products currently available in the range are Extra Crispy French fries and Extra Crispy Crinkle chips. Each pack retails at €4.50. Find them in the freezer aisle.
For generations, Irish families have trusted Green Isle to put good food on their tables. We’re more than just a food company; we’re a good company, and we’re committed to making it easy to eat well and live greener. To some people, Green Isle may just be the reliable pack in your freezer, but dig a little deeper, and you’ll realise that there’s much more to us than that. From sustainable packaging to tackling food waste, and ensuring our products are as nutritious as possible, we want to create an Ireland where everyone can eat better and live greener. That’s goodness for all.”
www.GreenIsle.ie
Instagram: @greenisle
Facebook: GreenIsle
McCain Home Chips: Ireland’s ‘favourite’ frozen chip
McCain Home Chips range
As demand continues to centre on tasty, convenient and affordable meal solutions, McCain Home Chips remains a standout performer in frozen – firmly cementing its position as Ireland’s favourite chip.
Loved for its signature crispy bite and fluffy potato centre, Home Chips deliver the taste of home cooking without the fuss. Made using the highest quality potatoes and McCain’s unique crunchy coating, it turns perfectly golden in the oven or air fryer, offering an irresistible combination of crispy and soft.
Home Chips are at the heart of mealtime moments, whether it’s a quick midweek dinner, a Friday fakeaway, or a shared family feast. Its versatility makes it the ideal pairing partner for everything from crowd‑pleasing classics to more adventurous dishes.
To help families get even more from what they love, the McCain range includes a generous big‑bag format*, offering more portions in a single pack. This format continues to play a key role in meeting household needs, with the Big Bag Chips category worth over €19.8**m – representing 10.4m kg and 6.1m units sold, with McCain holding the largest branded share at 32% Value.** This means there’s always enough to go around while giving households flexibility, convenience and the reassurance of a reliable freezer staple.
Together, these qualities help Home Chips remain a firm favourite in the weekly shop – a product families trust, and one retailers can confidently stock. With consistent performance, broad household appeal and ability to slot effortlessly into everyday mealtimes, Home Chips continues to earn its place in freezers across the country.
* Big Bag defined as >1.01 kg
**NIQ Scantrack 52we 28.12.25
Boost your freezer sales: Stock the refreshed Unislim range today
Unislim range
At Unislim, great taste and better nutrition go hand in hand. Its frozen range delivers healthier comfort food without compromise.
The refreshed lineup includes Unislim Crispy Skinny Chips 800g, Rustic Oven Chips 800g, and Sweet Potato Fries 450g — all specially developed to cook perfectly in the air fryer or oven, giving consumers a faster, lower-fat way to enjoy crispy favourites at home.
Created by Unislim’s expert food team, the products are vegan-friendly, gluten-free, low in saturated fat, and contain no artificial colours, preservatives or flavourings. Each recipe has been approved by leading Irish dietitians, reinforcing the brand’s strong health credentials while maintaining broad family appeal.
Eye-catching new packaging and Unislim’s trusted brand heritage position the range to stand out in freezer cabinets and drive incremental sales. Retailers benefit from strong consumer recognition and a category that aligns with growing demand for a premium, healthier convenience food.
A proudly Irish, family-run company, Unislim has been Ireland’s leading slimming and healthy lifestyle club since 1972. It has a highly engaged social media community that drives awareness. With over 240 weekly classes nationwide and a strong online presence, the brand continues to inspire healthier food choices — making it easier than ever for shoppers to enjoy good food, fast.
Chicken with Attitude’s new products
Chicken with Attitude Salt & Chilli Chicken
Chicken with Attitude Crispy Golden Shredded Chicken
Since its launch in 2020, Chicken with Attitude has enjoyed remarkable growth in the Irish market. Built on a reputation for premium-quality chicken and bold, distinctive coatings and flavours, the brand has quickly established itself as a firm favourite with Irish consumers, reflecting the wider shift toward convenient, high-quality meal solutions that do not compromise on taste.
In September 2025, the brand expanded its range with the introduction of two new additions: Chicken with Attitude Crispy Golden Shredded and Chicken with Attitude Salt & Chilli Shredded. Developed in response to rising demand for flavour-led convenience foods, these products are designed to fit seamlessly into the pace of modern family life, where shoppers increasingly seek quick yet satisfying options for everyday meals.
Fully cooked and ready in just eight to 10 minutes, the shredded chicken range delivers a versatile, time-saving solution ideal for everything from wraps and salads to loaded fries, pasta dishes, and sharing platters. It is a practical choice for busy households while also appealing to consumers looking to elevate simple meals with bold flavour.
True to the brand’s ethos that everything is better with attitude, this is chicken that shows up and shows off. Made from 100% whole chicken fillet, with no reformed meat in sight, each product is coated in a crispy, flavour-packed crumb that brings both crunch and character. Whether feeding a crowd or preparing a quick solo dinner, the result is outrageously tasty chicken designed to stand out in an increasingly dynamic category.
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