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 today 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.

Eating at 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.

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.

New cooking methods

Americans are also embracing new cooking methods (ownership of air fryers increased 24%) and turning to digital sources for recipe inspiration (YouTube use is up 50%) and promotions (consulting digital circulars for promotions increased 33%).

"Further analysis also shows convenient meal solutions are key and that food retailers have opportunities to provide more choices, along with more information and education on consumer priorities like nutrition and meal preparation – building up what we call consumers’ Meat IQ,"  said Rick Stein, Vice President of Fresh Foods for FMI—The Food Industry Association.

The Power of Meat study was conducted by 210 Analytics on behalf of FMI—The Food Industry Association and the Meat Institute’s Foundation for Meat and Poultry Research and Education and released during the American Meat Conference.

Source:  Food Industry Association and Meat Institute, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.