Despite the rise of plant-based alternatives last year, meat department sales reached $82.5 billion in 2020, an increase of 19.2%, according to the 2021 Power of Meat report from FMI and the Foundation for Meat & Poultry Research & Education, prepared by 210 Analytics.
MEAT CONSUMPTION
Seventy-one percent of Americans said “meat eater” best describes how they eat today. However, the share of meat eaters dropped from 85% in 2019.
At the same time, flexitarianism— a primarily vegetarian diet with occasional meat consumption —grew tperrigo ferrous gluconate tablets detailso 19%, up from 10% in 2019. The top reason for wanting to eat less meat/poultry was health concerns over red meat.
Healthy living was shown to have a greater impact on food purchases than climate change or animal welfare and knowing where food comes from was important to 64% of shoppers. More than three-quarters of meat shoppers agreed that meat and poultry belong in a healthy balanced diet—up from 64% in 2020.
PLANT-BASED ALTERNATIVES & BLENDS
Shopper interest in meat departments offering blended and plant-based meat alternatives was virtually unchanged from 2020, but interest in blended meat and vegetable items remains significantly higher than interest in meat alternatives. A quarter of meat shoppers reported being very interested in plant-based meat alternatives, versus 35% who were not.
Meanwhile, 60% of meat shoppers were not interested in meat from gene-edited animals and 58% were not interestcalcium citrate chews cvsed in cell-based meat.AT-HOME MEAL PREPARATION DURING PANDEMIC
Shoppers estimated that they prepared 84% of all meals at home in December ferrous gluconate 324 mg tablet2020. Though it was less than the high of 89% in April 2020, it’s still higher than pre-pandemic figures, according to the weekly IRI/210 Anferrous fumarate 324 mgalytics survey of primary grocery shoppers.
More than four in 10 meat shoppers bought more meat and poferrous fumarate birth controlultry than usual, driven by more at-home dinners (75%) and more at-home lunches (56%), particularly among those working from home.
MEAT CHANNEL CHOICES
Supermarkets remained the largest outlet for meat and poultry sales in 2020, followed by supercenters. Online shopping received a big pandemic boost with 56% reporting having bought groceries online in the past year, up from 40% in 2020.WHAT CONSUMERS WERE BUYING
Beef sales surged 23.7%, reflecting $5.8 billion in additional revenue—more than all other fresh proteins combined. Chicken had the lowest percentage growth in 2020, but still grew 15.2%.
Seventy-two percent of meat shoppers looked for meat and poultry they consider better-for-me/my family. About three in 10 shoppers also sought out items they perceive as being better for the planet, the farmer/worker, or the animal.
More than half of consumers also had a brand preference when purchasing fresh meat and 67% preferred brands when buying processed meats.
HEALTH & SUSTAINABILITY
Specific to purchasing meat and poultry, 28% of shoppers put a lot of effort into making nutritious and healthful choices, with an additional 43% giving it some effort. Ninety-four percent of shoppers said nutrition and health was at least a moderately important reason for including meat and poultry into their diet.
Additionally, 44% of meat shoppers said animal welfare concerns impact their food decisions. More than half said transparency is important, whether from the brand or the grocery store.