What do you do when consumers won’t go out to eat? You bring the restaurant to their kitchens. Actually, Pittsburgh’s H.J. Heinz Co. is the one putting the T.G.I. Friday’s restaurant meal experience in the freezercase.

Foodservice menu favorites migrating to the retail shelf? That’s nothing new. But how about a hit convenience store item making its way to retail?

Organic Bistro Whole Life Meals, Scottsdale, Ariz., said it will announce the national rollout of its healthy and convenient frozen meal line at Natural Products Expo East in Boston.

It’s a contrast of dimensional proportions.

In the 1930s, one Hollywood hit with wide appeal starring William Powell and Myrna Loy ironically was named “The Thin Man.” Now, care to guess what nutritional food product has the widest appeal to U.S. consumers? A brand with “lean” in its name.

What does leadership look like in the competitive world of frozen foods? Sometimes the answer comes from unlikely sources - such as hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, someone also known for his work in icy arenas.

You could say that the last five years have been a whirlwind for Rosina Food Products, Buffalo, N.Y. Actually, you don’t have to; Chief Operating Officer Roger Palczewski will say it for you.

It’s no accident that frozen Italian pasta and entrée processor Michael Angelo’s Inc. started out as a pizza parlor.

You’re either part of the problem or part of the (meal) solution. Pardon the play on words, but a visit to Bellisio Foods has me thinking about certain problems with retail meal solutions.

Last year found Michelina’s - at age 17 no less - changing its name to Bellisio Foods Inc. in recognition of founder Jeno Paulucci’s ancestral home of Bellisio Solfare, Italy.

In a January 2008 report titled, Convenience Foods in the U.S.: Fresh and Frozen, Packaged Facts, New York, wrote that retailers - and refrigerated and frozen prepared convenience foods, in particular - will benefit greatly from busier consumer lifestyles, Americans’ growing concern with health and their interest in ethnic cuisines and flavors.