Matcha and Mars Food & Nutrition France simplify choice to support growth in the Flavours of the World category
The Flavours of the World category (Asian and Mexican cuisine, for example) is one of the most dynamic in grocery retail. Enjoying sustained growth, it brings together broad ranges (sauces, condiments, snacking, ready meals, meal kits, and more), driven by the rise of new culinary trends and a growing appetite among French consumers for diversity and gustatory exploration. Yet online, this potential remains largely untapped: the offer is difficult to navigate, category structures do not always reflect shoppers' real decision criteria, and product discovery is limited.
It is in this context that Matcha and Mars Food & Nutrition are announcing the launch of a product recommendation solution for the Asian Flavours universe, where Mars is present with its flagship brand Suzi Wan®. At the same time, Matcha is also launching the solution for Mexican Flavours, the other pillar of the World Flavours category.
A growing category, still underexploited online
With a penetration rate of over 80%1, world food products are part of daily life for many French households, and their consumption continues to grow, driven by varied uses:
essential nutrition, convenience, culinary experience and wellbeing for Asian cuisine,
everyday cooking, culinary discovery and moments of sharing for Mexican cuisine.
Mexican cuisine is targeting an additional €96 million by 2030 and Asian cuisine an additional €80 million by 20282. This momentum is partly driven by younger generations: under-34s are overrepresented, drawn to ranges suited to smaller households and new usage occasions, including snacking, which is growing by 7.7%3.
Yet this is not, as things stand, a destination category: only 1 in 10 customers visits this category during a store visit, 40% struggle to find the products they are looking for, and half end up abandoning their purchase2. Online, the offer is even less easy to navigate.
"Mexican cuisine and Asian cuisine share something rare: they combine the everyday with escapism, and practicality with the pleasure of discovery. These are categories with a great deal to tell shoppers, but they needed the right structure to do so online. Working with Mars Food & Nutrition allowed us to build something grounded in real consumer behaviour," says Thomas Dayras, CEO and co-founder of Matcha.
Two universes, one solution, a first online
The solution developed by Matcha is built on proprietary algorithms, enriched with Suzi Wan®'s category expertise for Asian Flavours.
The aim is to make these cuisines part of French consumers' everyday routines, guiding each shopper towards the right product based on their profile, consumption occasion and format, from the family meal kit to the snacking product, via the everyday sauce or an inspiring evening dish.
The solution draws on well-documented consumption drivers: pleasure is the leading driver of at-home consumption in France for the world food category, with variety in second place, and also the leading reason for buying different types of kits4.
Two distinct interfaces have been designed, one dedicated to Mexican Flavours and the other to Asian Flavours, each reflecting the choice criteria specific to its universe. In the Asian Flavours universe, a dedicated journey by country takes shoppers on a voyage of discovery, while in the Mexican Flavours universe, a journey by spice level guides them from mild to intense.
Each interface meets the specific needs of its universe. Here is a journey with a mild spice level for Mexican meal kits.
The result: a simplified purchase journey, improved visibility of ranges, and a more engaging discovery experience, for a category that has yet to reveal its full potential.
"At Mars Food & Nutrition, our mission is to offer healthier, tastier and more accessible food, while inviting culinary discovery. World cuisines are experiencing exceptional enthusiasm in France, but the complexity of the online offer still puts off too many consumers. By combining the unique category expertise of our flagship brand Suzi Wan® with Matcha's innovative algorithms, we are removing these barriers. We now offer a smooth, personalised purchase journey, capable of guiding and inspiring every shopper day to day, while actively supporting the growth of our retail partners in this category of the future," concludes Kelly Henri, Suzi Wan® Activation Manager.
1 Nielsen Consommateur MAT P4 2025, Kantar Food Usage 2024 & Mintel, July 24, Industry Trend
2 Mars Study, 2023
3 Nielsen IQ, Total France, MAT P1 2025
4 Nielsen Homescan Panel View Kits, March 2024 / Kantar Food Usage Worldfood, January 2025 / Kantar Food Usage In-home consumption, July 2024
ABOUT MARS FOOD & NUTRITION
Mars Food & Nutrition is a segment of Mars, Incorporated, which has 2,000 Associates around the world. It brings together some of the world's most recognised food brands: Ben's Original™, Kevin's Natural Foods, MasterFoods®, Dolmio® and Suzi Wan®, enjoyed in more than 30 countries worldwide.
ABOUT MATCHA
Matcha, launched in 2018, develops a product recommendation solution deployed across around fifteen universes, from grocery shopping to beverages, petcare and beauty. The solution also integrates retail media directly into the recommendation experience and gives access to exclusive data on shopper behaviour. Its passionate tech team meets the needs of consumers, retailers and brands alike.
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