Not only does the U.S. pork industry need to make a product consumers demand, but it needs to expand who it is reaching with pork.
For pork to remain relevant, the industry needs to focus on future demand, says Kim Hamilton, director of marketing for the Illinois Pork Producers Association.
“The industry has been reaching a certain consumer that is aging out, resulting in a loss of volume,” she says. “If we’re going to bring younger consumers into the category, one of those groups has to be multicultural.”
Data shows the opportunities to grow pork demand are there. Here are five ways the U.S. pork industry is growing opportunities domestically to sell more pork.
1. Snout-to-Tail Strategy Sells More Pork in Chicago Grocery Chain
When you walk into a Tony’s Fresh Market store in the Chicagoland area, you’ll quickly discover it’s not a typical grocery store. It’s a pork-lover’s dream. To say they use everything except the oink might sound cliché, but at Tony’s, it couldn’t be more true. From snouts to tails, Tony’s makes full use of the pork carcass because its customers demand it.
With 180 pork products sold in 21 stores in Chicago, Scott Hackbarth, director of meat and seafood for Tony’s, agrees their stores are unique.
“We have a great platform for pork. I used to work for some of the competition locally, as well as nationally, years ago. I’ve never seen a company like Tony’s sell as much pork, beef, poultry and protein in general,” Hackbarth says. Read the full story.
2. For the Love of Pork: Influencers Eddie Zamora and Ashley Sampson Help Cooks Avoid Dry Pork Chops
People are looking for authenticity. That’s why influencers such as Eddie Zamora, the Yum Yum Foodie, and Ashley Sampson of Life With Ashley Ann are drawing droves of peopled to their social media platforms every day.
“People want genuine content – they want to see real life on social media,” Sampson said during a consumer influencers panel at the National Pork Industry Forum on March 6.
Although she coins herself as an “everyday wife and mom at home,” her influence is anything but that. She opens the door to her kitchen and her home to share inspiration with her followers, introducing them to convenient, relevant and delicious recipes that everyone in the family will want to eat.
“Pork matters to me because it’s a protein we choose to prepare at home in our kitchen,” she said. “I use a lot of varieties of pork cuts to encourage my audience to choose pork when making cooking decisions.”
Zamora said pork is a huge part of his life. Born and raised in Miami as the son of Cuban exiles, he said pork is about flavor and memories.
“Pork reminds me of home – of my mom, my dad, my grandmother and my grandfather. Pork is paramount in my life. It’s the dish of celebration for my Cuban community. It’s what we have for holidays. You won’t see a turkey at my house on Thanksgiving,” he said.
Pork is a culturally relevant food that’s authentic to Zamora’s story. Read the full story.
3. Pork Needs to Reach a Bigger Audience
Virtually all the recent population growth in the U.S. has come from either Hispanic consumers, African American consumers or Asian consumers, points out Jose De Jesus, senior director of multicultural marketing at the National Pork Board. According to a recent report, multicultural consumers account for 97% of all U.S. population growth over the past 20 years.
“They are a growing market, so we want to grow pork consumption and demand. We’ve got to attach ourselves to that,” de Jesus says.
Looking ahead to the next 40 years, he says that growth is not going to stop. “Data shows that these demographics are going to continue to grow and drive population growth over the next four decades,” he adds. Read the full story.
4. Change is Inevitable, Adaptation is Optional: Where is U.S. Pork Heading Now?
Data suggests fresh pork per capita consumption is on the decline in the U.S. among younger consumers. That’s why the National Pork Board built a new tool – NPB Consumer Connect – to work against some of the reasons why pork consumption is on the decline. One of those reasons is attitudinal segmentation, explains Brett Kaysen, senior vice president of producer and state engagement at the National Pork Board.
“As I visit with producers, I often ask, ‘How do you talk to 339 million Americans about pork?’ The reality is we don’t have to – this tool allows us to figure out which people we should talk to and about what,” Kaysen says.
Consumer Connect groups consumers in seven segments. The Checkoff is focusing on four. Read the full story.
5. It’s No Surprise What’s at the Center of Pork Industry Conversations Now
One of the major shifts to reach the younger generations will be realizing that they aren’t thinking about pork as the center of the plate. They are thinking about pork as an ingredient. How do I get protein on the go? How do I get it in a bite-sized snack? How do I consume it before or after a workout?
“That creates an opportunity for innovation,” says Brett Kaysen, senior vice president of producer and state engagement at the National Pork Board. “But if we don’t do something differently, the data suggests a significant drop in fresh pork consumption in the years ahead. “
Data shows in 2017, the per capita consumption of fresh pork in the U.S. was 17.4 lb. In 2022, that number dropped to 16.6 lb. If that trend continues, in 2032, the fresh pork per capita consumption would be 14.4 lb.
That data turns pork producers’ heads pretty fast. He’s quick to point out that he’s excited about data showing a huge return on investment with pork promotion to multicultural audiences. The Hispanic community is growing fast in the U.S., and they love pork. He says this is a bright spot for the U.S. pork industry’s domestic demand opportunity. Read the full story.
