Market Research Reveals Changing Consumer Attitudes
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Suggested Lead: Wendy Jenkins, director of Market Research for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, contractor to the Beef Checkoff Program, says consumer attitudes have been shifting for the last couple of years, trending toward lean beef choices and convenience items. She says that lean beef, now more than ever, is a perfect fit for the healthy lifestyle of today’s modern consumer.
Jenkins 1: “Lean beef, it’s interesting because it’s a pretty powerful – we’re certainly finding that it’s a powerful phrase for consumers. It’s something that we are focusing on more and more now. That’s not to say that we don’t still have that consumer out there that says ‘I eat beef because of the great taste. It is something that I love and I don’t want to give that up’. So we see that there is a consumer like that and we see that also in the sales that we have with ribeyes and so forth. But with the lean beef, we’re thinking that there is a new consumer out there that is very concerned about less saturated fat, fewer calories, lower in cholesterol, that we can say we’ve got 29 lean cuts out there. When we actually ask people to say okay, when you’re shopping for beef, what are the things that you shop most often for? A very high percentage, over 50 percent, say I buy cuts that are lean, and that’s super important to me.” (54 seconds)
Jenkins says the “need for speed and convenience” is manifesting itself in a variety of ways among consumers in the grocery store and in the kitchen at home. She explains HOW consumers are making their cooking decisions and what the checkoff is doing to address those changing trends.
Jenkins 2: “Convenience is something that we are so focused on in trying to get some of those cuts out there that fit into the convenient lifestyle, whatever that is for the consumer, whether it be time or the type of cut that they’re making, the knowledge that they have – all those play into convenience. So what we’re finding is there are very few people out there, only 25 percent, that are actually deciding their meals at least a day in advance. So we’ve got 75 percent that are saying I’m going to decide on the day, so there’s no preparation before. The other element of convenience is the quick preparation time. Over 80 percent of the dinner meals are prepared in 20 minutes or less. Most of them, over 75 percent, are cooked in less than 30 minutes. So that’s not even an hour, that’s not even an hour that people are spending in the kitchen. We are thinking about individualized portions, where in retail they’re able to buy say two different cuts that are available in the frozen section. We are thinking: what is the most convenient for consumers.” (60 seconds)
Jenkins says it’s no longer “Ozzie and Harriet” -- the 1950 and 60s ‘Ideal American Family’. Ozzie went to work while Harriet kept the household in order. She cleaned and cooked for the family…and they had family dinners together. Today’s family is a two-income household and they’re busy. So what’s on the horizon for this new consumer segment and what can the beef industry proactively do to assure the consumer that they’re getting the healthiest, safest beef available?
Jenkins 3: “If I had a crystal ball, it would be fantastic to know exactly what the future holds, but I think what we need to do in the beef industry is be transparent and talk about some of those aspects that people are concerned with, whether that be concerns with beef production and agriculture in our country. I don’t think that – there’s nothing that the beef industry needs to hide. I think people are wanting the facts and they want to have information. We definitely live in a world where immediacy and wanting to know is important, so that’s what we need to do as an industry is face some of those things that people are saying they’re concerned about, whether it be antibiotics or hormones or how the cattle are raised, what the farmers are doing. But we want to constantly let them know that we’re out there and doing positive things for the industry.” (49 seconds)
The beef checkoff constantly monitors the pulse of American consumers through regular market research, which in turn, helps form checkoff messaging, tactics and activities in an effort to responsibly invest producer checkoff dollars in programs that are built to build demand for beef.
For information on other efforts being funded with your beef checkoff investment, visit www.MyBeefCheckoff.com.
The Beef Checkoff Program was established as part of the 1985 Farm Bill. The checkoff assesses $1 per head on the sale of live domestic and imported cattle, in addition to a comparable assessment on imported beef and beef products. States retain up to 50 cents on the dollar and forward the other 50 cents per head to the Cattlemen’s Beef Promotion and Research Board, which administers the national checkoff program, subject to USDA approval.
Funded by the Beef Checkoff.
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