New Campaign to Bolster Pork Demand focusing on Taste

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The National Pork Board has rolled out a new campaign called Taste What Pork Can Do™ to support pork demand. The goal is to get the American consumer to include pork in more meals.

In the last 20 years, the US pork industry has increased, but much of that growth has been due to expanding export markets and natural growth (population increase). Consider the following: pork production in 2000 was 18.9 billion pounds. By 2024, pork production had increased to 27.8 billion pounds, an 8.9 billion pound (+47%) increase over the last two decades. During this period, pork exports increased from around 1.3 billion pounds in 2000 to 7.1 billion pounds last year. Exports accounted for almost two-thirds of the overall growth in US pork output during this period. The rest came from population growth, from around 281 million people in 2000 to 341 million last year.

On a per capita basis, pork consumption in the domestic market has been relatively stable, hovering around 64 pounds per person on a carcass weight basis (50 pounds per person on a retail weight basis). The challenge for the industry is that pork tends to have far more exposure to retail than foodservice. At the same time, people are consuming more meals outside the home. And sometimes even when meals are consumed at home, they are getting ordered in an app and delivered to their front door.

Dollar spending at foodservice has exploded. Consumers in April spent 7.8% more than a year ago on dining out, while spending at retail was up 2.7%. In 2000, dollar spending at foodservice for the entire year was $328 billion (nominal terms), while spending at grocery stores was $402 billion. Last year, spending at foodservice was $1.1 trillion, while spending at grocery stores was $890 billion. So foodservice spending went from being 18% smaller than grocery store spending to being 24% higher.

Bacon has been by far the winner at foodservice, having the highest menu penetration of any other pork item. This is followed by sausage, while ham is a distant third. We would argue that the reason is a) flavor and b) convenience. Gone are the days of low-fat diets and “the other white meat.” Hence the NPB focus now on “Taste.”

Fresh Pork Prices Poised to Move Higher Into the Summer

Loins struggled to get much traction in April and May but more recently prices have started to trend higher. This is consistent with other years where retailers will feature certain proteins going into Memorial Day and then cycle out of them in June and July. Beef and chicken prices are currently sharply higher than a year ago, which may limit continued features into the summer months. The price of 81CL coarse ground beef in May was 18% higher than a year ago and boneless/skinless chicken breast prices were 52% higher than last year. On the other hand, center cut boneless strap on and strap off pork loins in May traded 12-15% lower than a year ago. Indeed, as illustrated in the report, boneless pork loins have been far more stable than many other protein options available to retailers, providing excellent feature opportunities as consumers look to stretch their budgets.

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