The blast chillers market is projected to see exponential growth through 2027 owing to prominent product demand in the foodservice industry in key regions across the globe. Blast chillers refer to equipment that lower the temperature of the food quickly and have several shelves for storing food pans, which are chilled at extremely low temperatures.
Blast chillers work in significantly lesser time than conventional freezers or refrigerators, which eliminates many issues that can develop in slower cooling methods. Apart from fast cooling, blast chilling also offers several other benefits like decreased bacteria growth, streamlined food preparation process, nutrient retention, increased shelf life of prepared foods, moisture preservation, and enhanced freshness, which has played a key role in boosting product uptake in recent years.
After the onset of COVID-19, businesses needed to optimize operations to adapt to the changing scenario. Due to reduced staff and prevalent government-imposed social distancing rules, kitchens needed to alter their functions to remain operational. Blast chilling offers substantial flexibility since it works well in combination with modern multi-functional cooking appliances as well as combi ovens. This allows massive quantities of food to be cooked and chilled efficiently before they are stored. As a result, booming prominence of blast chillers in food storage has augmented industry growth during the pandemic.
The blast chillers market has been segregated on the basis of product, application, and region. Based on product, the market has further been categorized into roll-in blast chillers [by capacity (above 200kg, 100 - 200kg, below 100kg)], and reach-in blast chillers [by capacity (50 - 100kg, below 50kg)].
The roll-in blast chillers sub-segment is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 7.5% through the assessment period. Increasing demand for blast chillers in large hotels and restaurants is set to boost segmental adoption in the forthcoming years.
In terms of application, the blast chillers market has been segmented into supermarket, hotel & restaurant, bakery & confectionary, catering services, and others. The supermarket sub-segment is poised to reach a sizable valuation by 2027, expanding at a notable CAGR over the analysis timeline. Prevalent expansion of supermarkets across the globe owing to rising population is anticipated to drive product demand in supermarkets over the following years.
On the regional front, the Middle East & Africa blast chillers market accounted for a considerable share in the overall industry revenue in 2020 and is slated to progress at a steady pace over 2021-2027. Mounting number of smart commercial kitchens is foreseen to create a robust demand for blast chillers in the Middle East, which is speculated to foster regional market outlook in the future.