Not too long ago, consumer trends were leaning toward health and wellness and plant-based alternatives. But with the arrival of the coronavirus (COVID-19), consumers shifted their focus to safety, individually wrapped packages, value-added family bundles and comfort foods. Now, it’s hard to imagine eating any other way.
Consumers want products that meet their demand for health, convenience and a host of other claims; meal kits and delivery options are helping them reach those products and order more meat and poultry.
Consumers continue to embrace increased convenience, recipes and marketing with protein. The only twist is they now want all of that in new formats such as third-party delivery, meal kits and in-store advice.
The good news? Consumers say protein content is important. The bad news? They aren't always aware that meat, chicken and seafood are good sources of protein.
Meat and poultry still play an important role in the American diet, but more consumers — particularly those in the younger generations — want the facts behind the meat they eat.
The simple act of buying food at a restaurant or a grocery store has never been more challenging, thanks to an overload of online data, news reports and opinions widely available to every consumer.
Newspapers and news Web sites have spent considerable ink (or kilobytes) this year talking about the rising prices of meat and poultry products, and some pundits questioned if there would come a price point where consumers had to stop buying meat altogether.
Consumers consider their own financial and health situations, along with flavors and quality of the product, when making their protein-purchasing decisions.
In a perfect world, everyone’s cholesterol and credit levels would be right where they needed to be, and consumers could enjoy their meals without any outside interference.