Meat+Poultry - December 2020 - 21

eldarnurkovic - stock.adobe.com

D

uring the coronavirus (COVID-19)
pandemic, massive shifts showed
up throughout the meat and poultry
industry. One of the significant areas with
drastic transformation was the supermarket
retail landscape across the United States.
After stay-at-home orders were announced
in the spring, consumers rushed to local
grocery stores to stock up on supplies,
including meat products.
Although there are fewer restrictions for
people now, it will still be a record year for
retail consumption. To get a comprehensive
look at this system, Anne-Marie Roerink,
principal of San Antonio-based 210 Analytics,
provided an overview of the 2020 trends.
Speaking about the pandemic surges in
retail, Roerink said, " I don't think any one
of us has ever seen that. The only time you
see extreme sales spikes like this is leading
up to blizzards and hurricanes, but typically
people do not stock up on fresh meat, but
center-store items instead. Additionally,
those spikes are very regional. The pandemic
caused never before seen spikes across the
country and across all departments and
temperature zones. "
Roerink, 210 Analytics and IRI reported
that overall, meat dollar sales between March
15 and Oct. 4 are up 28.3% and volume sales
have increased by 16.9% versus 2019.
More data indicated an additional $9.6
billion in meat department sales during the
pandemic, which includes an additional $4.5
billion for beef, $1.3 billion for chicken and
$957 million for pork, compared to last year.
" The big winner in the pandemic has been
beef that gained share in both volume and
dollars, " Roerink said. " In part, this is due to
a very strong performance by ground beef, or
really all grinds, including turkey, lamb and
pork. Pork, too, has gained share in dollars
and volume. The one protein that has lost
some share, though has still seen tremendous
sales gains, is chicken. Chicken's share of
the total fresh meat dollar is down in dollars
and pounds. "
Roerink showed meat sales continuing
to track 15% to 20% ahead of last year.

Consumers did search for their favorite meats
at retailers, but they also looked at niche
proteins of lamb, bison and seafood.
" It's fair to say that during the big
stock-up weeks and later during the weeks
of tight supply, consumer choice was heavily
influenced by out-of-stocks, " Roerink said.
" That meant that many consumers bought
what was available, not necessarily what was
on their list. This boosted the sales of different
kinds of cuts and kinds of protein, as well
as new engagement with frozen meat and
seafood. But assortment has largely recovered,
and we continue to see elevated engagement
with the smaller proteins. "

MEAL FATIGUE
As quarantine continued in the spring and
summer months, consumers started to
recreate restaurant meals at home and more
people experimented with cooking species
and cuts they had previously ignored.
With the influx of people relying on
retail meat, 210 Analytics and IRI saw
companies continue to adapt to customers'
needs. Additionally, with online purchases
increasing, outlets realized what people
wanted, and didn't want, in their product mix.
" To keep supply going, the industry made
decisions on tray types and colors, amounts,
etc., and I imagine there will be decisions
on whether some of the SKU (stock keeping
units) rationalization and the removal of
complexities in the supply chain are here to
stay, " Roerink said. " More than anything, I
think the meat industry did a tremendous
job in communicating with other links in
the supply chain to understand pain points
and finding solutions together. Without a
doubt that has strengthened supply chain
cooperation for years to come. "
During the year, retail analysis continued
to track consumer meat habits. For 210
Analytics, it's been a mixed bag. They
can follow the meat dollar more because
purchases are all clustered at one time at
retail locations. Yet, it is more challenging
because people are not making multiple trips
to the grocery stores like in past years.

" The big
winner in the
pandemic has
been beef that
gained share
in both volume
and dollars. "
- ANNE-MARIE ROERINK

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Meat+Poultry - December 2020

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