CHICAGO – While some predicted meal kits would contribute to the decline of supermarkets, the opposite has happened: Grocery stores have proven necessary for meal kit survival, CNN Money reports. Blue Apron has explored partnering with a grocery chain, while Kroger bought Home Chef.

“You need to be part of a larger organization,” said R.J. Hottovy, a senior restaurant analyst at Morningstar. “I think there's a place for [meal prep kits] and there’s sufficient consumer demand. [The kits] offer a level of convenience that people are looking for. But the idea that you send a week’s worth of meals at once is evolving.”

Meal kits have been growing fast—up 40.7% in the last year, according to Earnest Research, and more partnerships are evolving between meal kit companies and retailers. For example, Walmart announced this week that it would sell Gobble meal kits online, Fortune reports. Gobble sells meals that can be made in one pan in 15 minutes or less.

“We continue to look for new options to offer customers,” said a Walmart spokesperson. “This includes specialty food items like the meal delivery kits by Gobble, farm fresh crates and snack boxes that give customers convenient options to plan and prepare meals.” Walmart has offered meal kits from Takeout Kit, Home Chef and Sun Basket online.

Last month, Chick-fil-A announced a pilot program to sell meal kits at several locations. NACS has worked with convenience stores on testing meal kit services.