Clarence Birds Eye in 1924 developed the plate freezer which reduced ice crystal size and improved food quality enabling General Foods to enter the retail frozen food market in the USA. In 1965 J Lyons introduced frozen prepared meals into the UK and built the first prepared meals continuous freezing tunnel. Fluidisation improved the quality of frozen fruits and vegetables and further mechanical, refrigeration and electronic developments enabled the IQF market in the UK to expand to a present day turnover of 5 billion