Frozen food is a broad U.S. food-system category spanning manufacturing, household use, food availability, wholesale distribution, international trade, and consumer prices. The statistics below identify the population, geography, period, and measurement type so that revenue, supply-side availability, survey responses, employment, and CPI changes are not treated as interchangeable.
Key Frozen Food Industry Statistics
The most useful headline figures include:
- In 2023, NAICS 31141 frozen food manufacturing recorded $46,706,838 thousand in U.S. sales, value of shipments, or revenue.
- In 2023, NAICS 31141 frozen food manufacturing reported $36,024,371 thousand in U.S. operating expenses.
- In 2023, NAICS 31141 frozen food manufacturing paid $5,247,497 thousand in annual payroll.
- In 2023, frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing recorded $20,147,437 thousand in U.S. sales, value of shipments, or revenue.
- In 2023, frozen specialty food manufacturing recorded $26,559,401 thousand in U.S. sales, value of shipments, or revenue.
- Seasonally adjusted employment in U.S. frozen food manufacturing was 91.0 thousand nonfarm payroll employees in December 2023.
- Seasonally adjusted employment in U.S. frozen food manufacturing was 95.4 thousand nonfarm payroll employees in August 2024.
- U.S. adults reported eating frozen meals or pizzas 2.7 times on average during the prior 30 days in 2007–2008.
- U.S. adults reported eating frozen meals or pizzas 2.4 times on average during the prior 30 days in the nationally representative pre-pandemic 2017–March 2020 dataset.
- U.S. per-capita regular-ice-cream consumption was 12.1 pounds per person in 2019.
- Frozen potato products averaged 58 pounds per person and about 50% of U.S. potato per-capita availability in 2022–2024.
- Frozen products represented 41% of loss-adjusted U.S. potato availability in 2019.
- USDA ERS estimated processing-vegetable availability at 102.7 pounds per person in the United States in 2025, excluding potatoes, sweet potatoes, and mushrooms.
- U.S. frozen-vegetable export value reached $1.52 billion during January–October 2024.
- Frozen foods represented 30% of specialty-wholesaler sales in the United States in 2022.
- The U.S. city-average CPI for frozen fish and seafood rose 8.8% over the 12 months ending June 2026.
Contents
- U.S. frozen food manufacturing scale, revenue, and operating costs
- Frozen food employment and workforce trends
- Frozen food consumption and consumer adoption
- Frozen food availability, category trends, and trade
- Frozen food distribution channels and consumer prices
U.S. Frozen Food Manufacturing Scale, Revenue, and Operating Costs
The Census Bureau’s Annual Integrated Economic Survey uses 2017 NAICS definitions. NAICS 31141 covers frozen food manufacturing, while 311411 covers frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing and 311412 covers frozen specialty food manufacturing; the universe is domestic, private, nonfarm employer businesses operating for at least part of the year with paid employees.
| 2023 U.S. manufacturing measure | NAICS 31141 | NAICS 311411 | NAICS 311412 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sales, shipments, or revenue ($1,000) | 46,706,838 | 20,147,437 | 26,559,401 |
| Operating expenses ($1,000) | 36,024,371 | 13,896,553 | 22,127,818 |
| Annual payroll ($1,000) | 5,247,497 | 1,634,793 | 3,612,704 |
| First-quarter payroll ($1,000) | 1,264,251 | 365,840 | 898,411 |
At the broad 31141 level, 2023 sales, shipments, or revenue were $46,706,838 thousand, alongside $36,024,371 thousand in operating expenses. Annual payroll was $5,247,497 thousand, and first-quarter payroll was $1,264,251 thousand.
The two detailed industries show different composition. Frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing reported $20,147,437 thousand in revenue, $13,896,553 thousand in operating expenses, $1,634,793 thousand in annual payroll, and $365,840 thousand in first-quarter payroll.
Frozen specialty food manufacturing reported $26,559,401 thousand in revenue, $22,127,818 thousand in operating expenses, $3,612,704 thousand in annual payroll, and $898,411 thousand in first-quarter payroll. These are observed 2023 business-survey measures, not forecasts or retail-only sales.
Frozen Food Employment and Workforce Trends
BLS Current Employment Statistics values are seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll estimates, reported in thousands. The available table provides December 2023 and August through November 2024 observations for the detailed industries.
| Industry and period | Employment (thousand) |
|---|---|
| Frozen food manufacturing, December 2023 | 91.0 |
| Frozen food manufacturing, August 2024 | 95.4 |
| Frozen food manufacturing, September 2024 | 94.1 |
| Frozen food manufacturing, October 2024 | 93.3 |
| Frozen food manufacturing, November 2024 | 93.1 |
| Frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing, December 2023 | 30.7 |
| Frozen specialty food manufacturing, December 2023 | 61.0 |
Broad frozen food manufacturing employment was 91.0 thousand in December 2023 and 95.4 thousand in August 2024. The subsequent seasonally adjusted observations were 94.1 thousand in September, 93.3 thousand in October, and 93.1 thousand in November 2024.
For frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing, employment was 30.7 thousand in December 2023, 33.7 thousand in August 2024, 32.4 thousand in September, 31.5 thousand in October, and 31.0 thousand in November. Frozen specialty food manufacturing recorded 61.0 thousand in December 2023 and August 2024, followed by 60.9 thousand in September, 61.5 thousand in October, and 61.9 thousand in November.
These figures describe payroll employment, not the total number of people working across farms, logistics providers, retailers, restaurants, or other adjacent activities.
Frozen Food Consumption and Consumer Adoption Data
The USDA Economic Research Service Flexible Consumer Behavior Survey measures self-reported eating frequency among adult respondents. Its 2017–March 2020 observation combines the 2019–March 2020 wave with 2017–2018 to create a nationally representative pre-pandemic dataset.
| Measure | Period | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Frozen meals or pizzas eaten by U.S. adults | 2007–2008 | 2.7 average occasions in past 30 days |
| Frozen meals or pizzas eaten by U.S. adults | 2017–March 2020 | 2.4 average occasions in past 30 days |
Source: Food Consumption & Demand – Flexible Consumer Behavior Survey.
The survey figures are adult averages, not retail-volume measurements. Respondents reported eating frozen meals or pizzas 2.7 times in the past 30 days in 2007–2008, compared with 2.4 times in the past 30 days in 2017–March 2020.
USDA ERS also provides 2019 per-capita frozen dairy availability estimates. Regular ice cream was 12.1 pounds per person, low-fat and nonfat ice cream was 6.6 pounds per person, and other frozen dairy products—including frozen yogurt and sherbet—were 2.3 pounds per person.
The estimate for all frozen dairy products was about 21 pounds per person in 2019. USDA ERS describes these figures as food-availability measures derived from supply-side data, so they are not identical to observed household consumption or retail sales.
Source: U.S. residents scooped more ice cream in 2000 than in 2019.
Frozen Food Availability, Category Trends, and Trade
USDA ERS availability measures are supply-side estimates based on production, trade, stocks, and other uses divided by population. They should be read as availability or disappearance indicators rather than direct household-consumption or retail-sales observations.
Potatoes illustrate the importance of frozen formats. In 2022–2024, frozen potato products averaged 58 pounds per person, representing about 50% of U.S. potato per-capita availability.
All potato categories averaged 115 pounds per person, while fresh potato availability averaged 28 pounds per person in the same period; the comparable fresh figure was 46 pounds per person in 2002–2004.
Source: From fresh to frozen: Potato per capita availability changes over time.
In 2019, frozen products represented 41% of loss-adjusted U.S. potato availability. Loss-adjusted availability accounts for losses and is not a retail-sales share.
For apples, canned, frozen, and dried apples together contributed 3.1 pounds per person to U.S. loss-adjusted fruit availability in 2021; the cited figure does not isolate frozen apples. After 2019, USDA ERS discontinued separate frozen/canned breakouts for seven affected vegetables and aggregates them into processed vegetables.
Source: Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials – Food Availability and Consumption.
The April 2026 USDA ERS outlook estimated processing-vegetable availability, excluding potatoes, sweet potatoes, and mushrooms, at 102.7 pounds per person in 2025, compared with 95.8 pounds per person in 2024. It also put preliminary U.S. potato availability at 112 pounds per person in 2025, with imports accounting for 22% of that all-use, fresh-weight-basis estimate.
Source: Vegetables and Pulses Outlook: April 2026.
Frozen vegetables are also a trade category. U.S. frozen-vegetable export value reached $1.52 billion in January–October 2024, up 4% year over year, while export volume rose 1% over the same period. Potato products made up more than 80% of frozen-vegetable export value and volume over the last three years covered by the December 2024 USDA ERS outlook; that share is approximate and does not identify one exact year.
Source: Vegetables and Pulses Outlook: December 2024, VGS-374.
Frozen Food Distribution Channels and Consumer Price Movements
Wholesale data describe the channels through which food reaches retail outlets and food-service operators, rather than frozen-only revenue throughout the supply chain. In 2022, specialty wholesalers represented 47% of U.S. grocery wholesale sales, and frozen foods represented 30% of specialty-wholesaler sales.
Source: Retailing & Wholesaling – Wholesaling.
The same USDA ERS summary reports $550.7 billion in 2022 U.S. wholesale sales received by food retail outlets and $327.3 billion received by food-service operators. Both totals cover all food wholesale sales to the respective outlet type, not frozen-only sales.
Consumer prices vary substantially by frozen category. BLS CPI-U measures for the U.S. city average report the following 12-month changes:
| CPI-U category | Measurement period | 12-month change |
|---|---|---|
| Frozen and freeze-dried prepared foods | Ending August 2026 | +0.1% |
| Frozen fruits and vegetables | Ending June 2026 | +1.5% |
| Frozen vegetables | Ending June 2026 | +2.1% |
| Frozen fish and seafood | Ending June 2026 | +8.8% |
| Frozen noncarbonated juices and drinks | Ending February 2026 | −0.3% |
The CPI for frozen and freeze-dried prepared foods rose 0.1% over the 12 months ending August 2026. In the detailed June 2026 readings, frozen fruits and vegetables rose 1.5%, frozen vegetables rose 2.1%, and frozen fish and seafood rose 8.8%; frozen noncarbonated juices and drinks fell 0.3% over the 12 months ending February 2026.
CPI-U changes are consumer price-index movements for the U.S. city average, not measures of industry revenue, operating expenses, profitability, or shipment volume.