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Beef, which has long satisfied the hunger of hamburgers in the United States, faces new competition from poultry producers who grow their own patties on American grills.
Hormel Foods
HRL -0.08%
one of the largest turkey suppliers in the United States, launched a campaign in June to encourage consumers to "switch from ground beef to ground turkey" ".
Tyson Foods
Inc.
introduced last year packets of ground chicken and retractable chicken burgers marketed under its Aidells brand. Meanwhile, tuna and salmon burgers are juggling to find space in the grocery store's meat crates, alongside a new generation of herbal burgers.
At present, beef remains the undisputed leader in retail sales. minced meat, according to Nielsen. US consumers spent more than $ 10 billion in fresh ground beef in the 12 months ended May 26. According to IRI, ground beef production has increased by more than a third over the last five years, compared with 6% for ground beef. Beef producers have learned not to underestimate poultry after the early 1990s when chicken overtook beef as the most consumed meat in the United States
"Are consumers more open to burgers other than beef? I would say absolutely, "said
David Friedman,
founder and CEO of Epic Burger, a Chicago hamburger chain that serves beef, turkey and vegetarian burgers.
In front of a Trader Joe meat case in Chicago, Amanda Clement, 28, studied hamburgers made from poultry, fish and vegetables. "I'm open to anything and anything," said Ms. Clement, who plays in musical productions, while she was examining a $ 10.99 pack of bison burgers. "If it's good for your health and it's going to be nice, I'll try it."
The hamburger helped ground beef to carve out a prominent place in the kitchen. American beef industry in recent decades. According to data compiled by the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, 64% of ground beef is currently sold in the United States, and over one-fifth of all beef eaten at home between small hamburger buns
. In my opinion, that's the hamburger "said Stephen Giunta, culinary director for Proteins at Cargill Inc., one of the largest turkey processors in the United States and the largest manufacturer of ground beef in the world. While the concept of hamburger is tense-Mr. Giunta sang the praises of a salmon burger that he recently consumed – "it's really hard to replace the original."
For consumers, hamburgers are cheaper. After a 2012 drought that forced southern ranchers to reform their herds, the US beef cattle herd has rebounded, rising by about 12% over the past four years to reach its highest level. for nearly a decade. This helped lower retail beef prices by 16% from September's high of $ 5.12 to about $ 4.31 in June, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture. United States Agriculture
. An outbreak of bird flu in 2015 forced farmers to eliminate millions of turkeys, but since then production has risen 5%, bringing prices down to their lowest level in seven years and reducing processor profit margins. The production of broiler chickens for meat is expected to reach 42.5 billion pounds this year, and several processors, including Tyson, are building new plants.
Hormel launches in June a multicultural campaign for ground turkey and online ads that implore consumers to "turn away" from ground beef. The effort continues a periodic push Hormel introduced in 2010, when the company undertook to "convert people to Turkey by diverting the love of America with the burger."
Steve Lykken,
According to the president of the Hormel & # 39; s Jennie-O Turkey Store unit, ground turkey is leaner than beef for health conscious consumers, and it behaves the same way: "It emulates the texture and carries it really well. "
believes that its birds deserve a place in the minced meat trade. The company applies its brands Tyson and Aidells on the fly, touting it for hamburgers, tacos and meat bowls, with a taste that officials find more versatile and familiar to consumers than turkey.
burger, "because of the established role of meat in sausages and meatballs," said Tyson's chief executive
Tom Hayes.
While poultry can be cheaper than beef – the USDA estimates that turkey meat and chicken cuts are currently cheaper by 8 to 15 percent in grocery stores – in a strong economy it does not matter. "As consumers have higher disposable incomes, their appetite for beef products has been very good in all areas," said Don Close, senior meat analyst at Rabobank.
Los Angeles Umami Burger, Martin Heierling, head chef for parent company SBE Entertainment Group, said it's probably a battle for second place: "It always comes down to the same thing, the beef . "
He's still tinkering with recipes for a chopped chicken burger and new turkey burger that could hit the Umami menus around Thanksgiving. "We welcome the crowd, but we are constantly trying to get things done," said Heierling.
Write to Jacob Bunge at [email protected]
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