Page 46 - Deli Business June/July 2020

FEATURE
A Meaty Situation
A deli meat update on turkey, ham, roast beef and salami.
Deli meat sales are usually strong in the spring. This is when schools are still in ses- sion and the weather turns nicer in many parts of the
country, allowing for people to plan picnics and outdoor gatherings.
But with the COVID-19 pandemic, and many grocery stores halting live deli work- ers, replacing them with pre-packaged deli meats available for consumers, there has been an obvious drop-off in 2020.
Eric Richard, education coordinator at the Madison, WI-based International Dairy-Deli-Bakery Association (IDDBA), says pre-COVID, the deli department was doing extremely well, and while prepared foods were driving a lot of that, deli meats were also very strong.
“Year over year, turkey meat was up 2 percent, ham was up about 1 percent, and there was steady growth over the whole department, which is something we’ve been seeing over the past few years,” he says. “Since COVID hit, we’re still seeing deli meat sales do okay, but the challenge has become the ease in getting some of
BY KEITH LORIA
those deli meat products.”
He explains in some instances, retailers
have had to shut down their deli depart- ments, limit the number of hours or shift staff to other sections of the store that were falling behind.
“It’s been challenging from what we’ve been hearing from some of our retailers, but of those who have kept their deli depart- ments open—wearing the proper protective gear of gloves, masks and screens to provide a barrier between the people behind the counter and customers, we’ve been hear- ing good things,” says Richard. “But there are people hesitant to shop because their health is on the line. We believe that’s some- thing that will play itself out but there are so many unknowns right now.”
Still, meats including turkey, ham, roast beef and salami remain popular for lunches among kids and adults alike, and there’s every reason to believe that once things start to get back to normal, sales will return to where they were pre-coronavirus.
Arnez Rodriguez, an industry analyst with Los Angeles-based IBISWorld, which tracks the deli meat category on a regu-
lar basis, notes the category was strong in early 2020, reflecting a trend deli meat has been experiencing since 2015.
“Meats such as turkey, chicken and roast beef have grown in popularity rela- tive to ham due to the high fat content of pork,” says Rodriguez. “As consumers have become more health conscious over the past five years, lean protein sources have become preferable to fatty meats.”
Despite this trend, salami has experi- enced growth over the past five years to 2020, as the consumption of “party ready” platters has grown during the same period.
Additionally, snack combos containing small amounts of charcuterie are among the fastest growing products in delis. Over the past four years, snack combos are esti- mated to increase at an annualized rate of 20.7 percent, according to New York City- based Nielsen.
Deanna Depke, marketing manager for Volpi Foods, St. Louis, says when it comes to del meat, overall, the company is seeing consumers migrating to premium products in more convenient formats, with better- for-you options.
46 DELI BUSINESS JUN/JUL 2020