Frozen Foods: Delivering Whole Food Nutrition to Every American
From farm fresh produce to modern meal solutions, frozen food offers options to meet the dietary needs and preferences of all Americans. In fact, frozen foods are a critical component in helping people achieve recommendations in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Full details of AFFI’s policy recommendations are available here.
How Frozen Foods Support a Healthier America
Preserving Nutrition Through Nature's Simplest Method
Freezing is nature’s pause button—a simple change in temperature that locks in nutrition without the need for artificial additives or preservatives. Studies confirm frozen fruits and vegetables are nutritionally equal to, or greater than, fresh counterparts. Frozen food is real food, preserved by temperature, ready when you need it.
Whole Food Ingredients for Real Family Meals
Today’s frozen foods feature nutrient-rich, whole food ingredients—full servings of vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains—enabling families to build balanced meals without extensive prep time. A recent analysis found frozen meals are nutritionally comparable to homemade equivalents at about the same cost per serving.
Accessible Nutrition for Every Community
Frozen foods ensure year-round access to peak-nutrition for every community—from urban centers to rural food deserts. According to ReFED, frozen food is the least likely to go to waste, and more than 8 in 10 consumers agree buying frozen helps limit waste at home. For families on tight budgets, frozen delivers variety, convenience, and nutritional value that make healthy eating achievable.
Current Key Issues
Supporting All Healthy Options When Purchasing Produce (SHOPP) Act: We support the SHOPP Act, which will make healthy eating easier for many families through the inclusion of frozen fruits and vegetables in the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP) and Produce Prescription Program.
Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC): We support the expansion of acceptable formats of fruits and vegetables in WIC and requiring all state agencies to include frozen fruits and vegetables in their WIC programs.
Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP): We advocate for the preservation of SNAP participants’ food purchasing choices and seek to ensure that consumers continue to have the option of buying frozen foods that are easy to prepare, affordable and reduce food waste.
Did you know?
Frozen food reduces barriers to nutrition, supports public health and benefits communities.
