TABLE 2.

Category definitions and criteria for classifying foods and beverages based on convenience and the amount of preparation required by the consumer before food consumption¹

Category/definition	Beverages	Fruit, vegetables, legumes	Meat/meat dishes/eggs	Grain products	Dairy products	Fats/oils, sweets, other
Cooking and/or preparation:
Requires substantial input of consumer’s time, culinary skill, energy, or attention to cook/prepare before consumption; not typically consumed as purchased	Coffee (whole/ground beans), tea (leaves/bags)	Fresh fruit or vegetables requiring preparation (heads of lettuce, onions, broccoli, whole melon) or cooking (potatoes); canned tomatoes; dried beans	Eggs, uncooked meat, uncooked sausage or bacon	Flour, dry pasta or rice, pasta/rice dish mixes (boxed macaroni and cheese), grain-based dessert mixes, pancake or biscuit mixes	Whipping cream, evaporated milk, pudding mixes, sweetened condensed milk	Oil, shortening, baking chocolate, gelatin mixes, cooking sauces, herbs and spices, sauce/seasoning mixes
RTH or minimal preparation:
Requires a small amount of consumer’s time or effort and no culinary skill or attention (such as heating, microwaving, thawing, or adding water); not typically consumed as purchased	Powdered mixes for sports drinks or flavored waters; instant tea mixes; frozen fruit juice concentrate; cocoa or coffee beverage mixes; dry milk; instant coffee	Frozen or canned vegetables or legumes; frozen fruit; frozen French fries, tater tots, or hash brown patties; frozen potato dishes (mashed potatoes, stuffed baked potatoes); frozen meals with potatoes as main ingredient; instant mashed potatoes or potato mixes; vegetable, potato, or corn-based soups; frozen vegetables, potatoes, or corn in sauce; onion rings; tomato sauce; canned baked beans or beans with pork or hot dogs	Precooked sausage; hot dogs; frozen or refrigerated meat dishes (meatloaf, crab cakes, pot roast, barbecue); meat-based frozen meals (Salisbury steak); breaded meat (chicken nuggets, fish sticks); meat-based soups	Frozen pizza; frozen grain-based dishes (burritos, sandwiches, pot pies); frozen pasta dishes (lasagna, ravioli) or frozen meals (spaghetti and meatballs, macaroni and cheese); frozen pasta- or rice-based dinners; noodle- or rice-based soups; frozen pancakes or waffles; microwaveable popcorn; hot cereals; frozen cakes or pies; ready-to-bake cookies, biscuits, or rolls; instant rice or pasta dish mixes; canned ravioli or other pasta dishes; instant rice; stuffing mixes	Frozen whipped topping, Alfredo sauce, cheese dip/queso	Ready-to-spread icing; broth and bouillon; premade gravy or sauces
RTE:
Can be consumed immediately with no preparation	Milk, soda, alcohol, fruit drinks, fruit or vegetable juice, ready-to-drink tea, sports drinks, energy drinks, flavored waters, bottled water, soy milk, ready-to-drink coffee beverages	Fresh, canned, or dried fruit; fruit snacks; jam; jelly; fresh/refrigerated RTE vegetables (precut bagged salad, baby carrots); entrée garden salads; olives, pickles; salsa; potato chips; potato salad; peanut butter; nuts	Lunch meat; canned meat or processed meat (Spam); summer sausage; beef jerky; seafood or chicken salad	RTE cookies, doughnuts, pastries, and other grain-based desserts; salty snacks (potato chips, crackers, pretzels, tortilla chips, corn chips, prepopped popcorn); RTE bread, tortillas, rolls, bagels; RTE cereal	Cheese, ice cream, yogurt, creamer, cream, sour cream, dairy-based dip, RTE pudding, whipped cream	Margarine, mayonnaise, butter, salad dressing, candy, sugar, pancake syrup, honey, popsicles, sorbet, dessert syrups, artificial sweeteners, RTE gelatin, ketchup, barbecue sauce, and other condiments

¹Mutually exclusive categories of convenience were defined based on the amount of food preparation required by the consumer before a product can be eaten. Products that can be prepared in alternative ways were categorized based on the most minimal preparation typically required. Convenience was considered separately from food processing. Food groups were defined broadly to classify all products into beverages or 10 mutually exclusive food groups. “Fruit, vegetables, and legumes” includes fruit/fruit products, vegetables/vegetable products, starchy vegetables/starchy vegetable products, and nuts/legumes. “Meat” includes beef, pork, poultry, and seafood. Fresh fruits and vegetables and fresh unseasoned meats were included in our study only if they were barcoded. RTE, ready-to-eat; RTH, ready-to-heat.