Frozen Meals
LeeAnn Smith, MPH, RD
T HE FIRST FROZEN MEAL was developed
in 1945 for consumption on military and
commercial airplanes.1 In 1954, when Swanson’s
frozen meals hit the market, the ‘‘TV Dinner’’ be-
came an icon of American culture. At that time,
the frozen meal consisted of a three-compartment
tray containing meat, potatoes, and vegetables.
Now the frozen-foods aisle at the supermarket is
packed with an ever-growing selection of frozen
meals marketed to a diverse consumer population.
During a stroll through the freezer section, you
may come across ethnic cuisines such as Thai, In-
dian, and Italian, and specialty diet meals catering,
for example, to vegetarians or low-carb dieters.
Nephrology dietitians work with a diverse popu-
lation of patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD),
many of whom may benefit nutritionally from the
convenience of frozen meals. Patients who are trying
to juggle a dialysis regimen, plus a work schedule and
family life, may not find the time to prepare home-
cooked meals. In addition, frozen meals are often ap-
propriate for those who are physically unable to cook
safely at home. Some patients may have difficulty
preparing meals for a range of reasons, including
weakness, inability to stand, poor eyesight or blind-
ness, and illness. Frozen meals provide these patients
with an option for quick and easy dining at home. It
was reported that older individuals have a higher
acceptance of frozen meals.2
Which frozen meals are can be recommended for
CKD patients? Frozen meals can be very high in so-
dium, potassium, and phosphorus, rendering many
of them unsuitable for our patients. Unfortunately,
food labels on frozen meals do not always contain
the necessary information to educate patients about
which frozen meals constitute a better choice. Al-
though disclosure of sodium content is mandatory
on the nutrition facts label, obtaining potassium
and phosphorus content can pose a challenge,
because food companies are not required to report
this information, and therefore manyof them do not.
DaVita Crescent Heights Dialysis.
Address reprint requests to LeeAnn Smith, MPH, RD, DaVita
Crescent Heights Dialysis, 8151 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA
90048. E-mail: RD@halfacup.com.
Ó 2009 by the National Kidney Foundation, Inc.
1051-2276/09/1903-0000$36.00/0
doi:10.1053/j.jrn.2009.02.002
Journal of Renal Nutrition, Vol 19, No 3 (May), 2009: pp e11–e13
Upon searching food-company websites and call-
ing the companies directly to obtain this additional
pertinent nutrition information for the frozen meals
listed in Table1, some companies were able to pro-
vide the potassium and phosphorus content. See
Table 2 for the contact information for frozen
meal manufacturers.Any nutrient level that was un-
able to be found is listed as ‘‘not available’’ (NA). This
does not imply that the level is insignificant, but that
the information is not being made available to con-
sumers. It is the role of nutrition and nephrology
professionals to advocate for the disclosure of com-
plete nutrition information of food products so
that CKD patients may be appropriately educated.
The National Kidney Foundation recommends
that CKD patients choose frozen meals with
sodium under 20% and total fat less than 15%3
(see Table 1 for a list of frozen meals that may
fall within the parameters of your patients’ dietary
requirements).
The meals listed in Table 1 have less than 700 mg
of potassium, and nearly all contain less than 700
mg of sodium. Although phosphorus levels were
unavailable for the majority of meals, those listed
fall between 100 and 240 mg. The one exception
is Organic Bistro’s Sockeye Salmon Cakes (310
mg). Because this meal is extremely high in both
calories and protein, it would be expected to con-
tain more phosphorus. The calorie and protein
content of the meals varied widely, from 140 to
600 calories, and 3 to 36 g of protein. The fiber
content of frozen meals is relatively low, ranging
from 1 to 9 mg. Each meal is equal to one serving
size. The frozen meals listed are available in many
supermarkets. The growing market for home-
delivered meals, including the food company Alle-
ready Foods, which tailors meals for patients on
dialysis, is beyond the scope of this article.
References
1. The Library of Congress: Who ‘‘invented’’ the TV dinner?
11 September 2008. Available at: http://www.loc.gov/rr/
scitech/mysteries/tvdinner.html
2. Gregoire MB, Nyland N, Morcos S: Use of frozen meals by
and food preferences of various age groups of adults. J Nutr Elder
13:23–37, 1993.
3. National Kidney Foundation: Treating kidney disease and
eating healthy. 11 September 2008. Available at: http://www.
kidney.org/patients/plu/plu_nutr/nutr_2.cfm
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Table 1. Nutrition Information for Frozen Meals
Protein Fat Trans Potassium Sodium Fiber
Manufacturer Product Name Calories (g) (g) Fat (g) (mg) Phosphorus (mg) (g)

Amy’s Asian Noodle Stir Fry 290 9 7 0 410 210 630 4

Amy’s Black Bean Enchilada Meal 330 9 8 0 250 110 740 9
Amy’s Thai Stir Fry 310 8 11 0 340 140 420 5
Amy’s Brown Rice and Vegetable Bowl 260 9 9 0 520 240 550 5
Amy’s Light in Sodium Vegetable Lasagna 290 15 8 0 449 NA 340 4
Amy’s Light in Sodium Veggie Loaf 290 9 8 0 628 NA 340 7
Amy’s Macaroni and Soy Cheeze 370 16 15 0 140 NA 500 4
Healthy Choice Sweet and Sour Chicken 430 16 9 0 500 NA 600 5
Healthy Choice Beef Stroganoff 340 20 9 0 630 NA 490 5
Healthy Choice Chicken Broccoli Alfredo 300 17 5 0 430 NA 430 8
Healthy Choice Country Herb Chicken 240 15 5 0 610 NA 600 5
Healthy Choice Lemon Pepper Fish 310 13 4.5 0 450 NA 440 5
Healthy Choice Grilled White Meat Chicken 240 22 5 0 540 NA 600 4
Healthy Choice Roast Turkey Breast 200 14 3.5 0 NA NA 600 5
Kashi Chicken Pasta Pomodoro 280 19 6 0 510 NA 470 6
Kashi Black Bean Mango 340 8 8 0 430 NA 430 7

SMITH
Kashi Lemon Rosemary Chicken 330 17 9 0 360 NA 640 5
Kashi Lime Cilantro Shrimp 250 12 8 0 300 NA 690 6
Kashi Southwest Style Chicken 240 16 5 0 540 NA 680 6
Lean Cuisine Alfredo Pasta With Chicken and Broccoli 250 17 6 0 375 NA 650 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Chicken Marsala 140 14 4 0 200 NA 520 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Chicken Teriyaki 250 15 2 0 590 NA 690 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Grilled Chicken Caesar 240 18 7 0 350 NA 690 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Bow Tie Pasta and Chicken 230 16 4.5 0 590 NA 660 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Three Cheese Chicken 210 21 10 0 550 NA 500 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Tortilla Crusted Fish 330 16 9 0 280 NA 540 3
Lean Cuisine Café Classics Chicken a l’Orange 260 18 3 0 490 NA 580 2
Lean Cuisine Spa Cuisine Butternut Squash Ravioli 350 13 9 0 310 NA 660 6
Lean Cuisine Spa Cuisine Hunan Stir Fry With Beef 270 15 7 0 660 NA 610 2
Lean Cuisine Spa Cuisine Lemon Chicken 300 15 5 0 320 NA 570 3
Lean Cuisine Spa Cuisine Chicken Mediterranean 240 19 4 0 560 NA 590 6
Organic Bistro Chicken Citron 430 34 17 0 620 210 370 6
Organic Bistro Ginger Chicken 360 34 14 0 330 150 400 7
Organic Bistro Sockeye Salmon Cake 600 34 36 0 690 310 350 8
Organic Bistro Savory Turkey 480 39 17 0 630 200 320 7
Organic Bistro Pasta Puttanesca 320 11 6 0 640 100 380 8
Organic Bistro Spiced Chicken Morocco 340 22 10 0 210 70 270 7
Organic Bistro Jamaican Jerk Shrimp Cake 320 18 7 0 430 180 105 6
(Continued )
Table 1. Nutrition Information for Frozen Meals (Continued )

Protein Fat Trans Potassium Sodium Fiber

Manufacturer Product Name Calories (g) (g) Fat (g) (mg) Phosphorus (mg) (g)
President’s Choice Chicken Szechwan 200 17 4 0 320 NA 440 4
President’s Choice Chicken Tikka Masala 290 19 3.5 0 290 NA 430 3
President’s Choice Rotini With Chicken Pesto 370 24 8 0 530 NA 670 6
President’s Choice World’s Best Seasoned Meatless Chicken 150 24 3 0 600 NA 530 1
President’s Choice Ginger-Glazed Salmon 300 17 4 0 450 NA 570 5
President’s Choice Thai Noodles With Coconut Chicken 288 14 8.5 NA 415 NA 660 2.8
NA, not available.

FROZEN MEALS
Table 2. Frozen-Food Manufacturers’ Contact Information
Manufacturer Address Telephone

Amy’s Kitchen, Inc. PO Box 449, Petaluma, CA 94953 707-578-7270

ConAgra Foods (Healthy Choice) PO Box 3768, Omaha, NE 68103 877-266-2472
Kashi Company PO Box 8557, La Jolla, CA 92038 877-747-2467
Nestle USA (Lean Cuisine) PO Box 2178, Wilkes Barre, PA 18703 800-225-2270
Organic Bistro 4300 N. Miller Rd., Suite 242 Scottsdale, AZ 85251 480-664-8729
President’s Choice 1 President’s Choice Circle, Second Floor NW Brampton, 888-495-5111
Ontario L6Y 5S5, Canada

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