Americans are buying more beef, pork, poultry, and lamb than ever as increased time at home during the pandemic sent meat grocery sales soaring by 20% (IRI) from 2019 to 2020.
The national analysis released on March 23, 2021 shows that three out of every four Americans agree meat belongs in healthy, balanced diets (up by nearly 20% since 2020), and 94% say they buy meat because it provides high-quality protein.
Americans are doing more cooking from home
Nearly all American households (98.4%) purchased meat in 2020 (IRI), and 43% of Americans now buy more meat than before the pandemic - primarily because they are preparing more meals at home.
The proportion of meals prepared at home peaked at 89% in April 2020 and remained at 84% in December (IRI), considerably above pre-pandemic levels and particularly impacting Millennials who were previously most likely to eat out.
Americans are getting accustomed to buying food online
The number of meat shoppers who purchased groceries online grew 40% in 2020, and the majority of online purchasers (59%) expect to continue purchasing about the same amount online in 2021, suggesting food shopping habits may have changed permanently.
Why is this good news for Dexter beef producers?
These trends validate that in spite of rising beef/meat prices there is a strong demand for quality beef. But more importantly, the trend that even the smallest beef producer can easily take advantage of, regardless of how remotely your farm might be located, is how people are changing the way they buy their beef/meat post-pandemic (online) vs the pre-pandemic.
Online buying/selling vs in-person offers many advantages to both the seller and the buyer. An online farm store, where customers can shop, order, coordinate delivery or pick-up and even pay at their convenience, is so easy to create when you use the right platform/software.
PDCA recommends Eat From Farms.com, a small-farmer friendly online farm store builder that has just the right amount of features without overwhelming the non-technical types amongst us. Eat From Farms.com is very affordable and also offers personal assistance to help you get your online farm store up, running and working for you quickly and easily. PDCA takes its business motto “We work for YOU!” seriously and is confident that Eat From Farms.com will provide PDCA members with that same level of personal service.
Statistics source: https://www.farmprogress.com/beef/meat-purchases-and-confidence-record-highs
