I think of this food as exorbitantly expensive, mostly because it was when I was a kid.  I would never buy it because I love to buy local seasonal produce.  A lot of single fellows I know buy this stuff because it makes cooking a homemade meal fit in their schedule. 

My thought is that if pre-cut foods help you cook a from-scratch dinner as opposed to boxed matched potatoes, macaroni and cheese, frozen skillet meals, or takeout, by all means go for the lazy food.  Seems like Rachel Ray etc. have so few people cooking real meals, I'm not going to slam someone for buying tinned soup or bottled pasta sauce.  They're great when you don't have the energy for a long time in the kitchen.  And my great nan would think buying bakery bread and vegetable stock was a waste.  Times change.