Getting strategic over the future of chicken during COVID

Our national meat supply is facing unprecedented challenges and news outlets are abuzz about the potential for shortages and rising costs affecting U.S. supermarkets. But with an understanding of the dynamics at play, there is arguably no time like the present for food retailers to focus on improving surety of supply and right sizing their cost structure for chicken.

Surging Retail Demand

Meat has become this month’s toilet paper in that consumers are rushing to stock up, some supermarkets are struggling to fill shelves, and the news cycle is pumped full of story after story about risks to availability. By the end of April, Nielsen was reporting weekly supermarket meat sales surging 41% as consumers are betting that they will consume the vast majority of meals at home for the foreseeable future. 

Retailers are working tirelessly to secure supply and taking steps to insulate from a run on meat. The first week of May, both Kroger and Costco extended purchase limits to include chicken. Meanwhile, retailers are pulling back promotions and increasing price. According to Nielsen, weekly average retail meat prices were up less than 2.5% into February but as high as 8.6% each week in April.