What's Hot and What's Not: Beef Trends in the Supermarket

by Gary C. Smith, Colorado State University, from a presentation at the Wakefern Food Corporation Seminar in 2002.

Feedstuffs Magazine (Nov. 21) reported Japanese consumers are frightened over the link between BSE and a human form of the disease, variant Creutzfeldt-Jacob Disease. They are inexperienced with beef, a Japanese market that has only developed in the last 10 years. Beef sales in Japan have plunged 50 to 80 percent since the first case of BSE was reported, and U.S. beef exports to Japan plunged 40 to 70 percent, according to the U.S. Meat Export Federation (MEF).

MEF officials said it may take three to four years to re-establish the beef market in Japan, which represents a critical market for the American beef industry. Ten percent of American beef is now exported, with Japan accounting for half of those exports, or five percent of production: $36 per head to producers.

Excerpts reprinted here from Dr. Smith's lecture address important questions about food safety.

Will "traceability" (farm-to-fork traceback) be an important component of the supermarket meat counter of the future?

If you purchase beef at a Tesco supermarket in Ireland, the name, address and telephone number of the person who produced the animal from which the meat was derived is part of the printed cash-register receipt. In Ireland, New Zealand and Australia, muscle or blood samples are taken from individual cattle and lambs so that matches can be made (using DNA fingerprinting) between animal and specific meat cut if a problem (e.g., chemical residue, unsatisfactory palatability) occurs with a product sold at retail. Present thinking is that traceback in the U.S. supermarket of the future will be accomplisehd through traceability to all animals produced by a supply chain, rather than traceback to individual animals. (A supply chain is a vertically coordinated, farm-to-fork sequence of beef-production operations in which producers, feeders, packers and retailers work collectively to meet consumers' wants and needs for beef products.)

Is "branded-beef" gaining market share in supermarkets?

Absolutely! But, supermarkets now wish to capture some or all of the advantages of branding beef for themselves ("owning" the brands), as opposed to forfeiting them to others (e.g., Certified Angus Beef). CAB's unprecedented success has spawned dozens of "me too" Angus beef programssome owned by packers, others co-packed for supermarket chains. The dominant "Natural" beef programs (Maverick, Coleman, B3R, Laura's) have maintained their market positions, probably because, though margins are high, it takes too much involvement in the production sector to make an "owned" Natural brand program feasible for a grocery company. Future Beef Operations has contracted with Safeway to supply all their fresh beef, which will be labeled at retail with the Safeway brand. King Soopers and City Markets in Colorado rolled out "Cattlemen's Collection" fresh beef, produced exclusively for those divisions of Kroger by the Excel Corporation. For both the Safeway and the King Soopers/City Market branded beef programs, the meat is generated by a supply chain.

"Enhanced" fresh pork cuts are popular; are enhanced fresh beef cuts next?

Enhanced cuts provide consumers with improved juiciness and tenderness, plus protection of palatability when the product is overcooked. Enhanced cuts contain an extra eight to 20 percent water and/or phosphates, sodium lactate, salt and flavorings.

Walmart has added Thomas E. Wilson products from IBP, and ConAgra has introduced Armour Guaranteed Tender Beef in divisions of Albertson's; products in both of those lines are enhanced. The jury is still out on the case for enhanced beef but, especially in markets where shoppers prefer lean (usually U.S. Select) steaks and roasts, enhanced beef may be a perfect fit. Could veal and lamb be next?

Should supermarket operators fear that "Mad Cow Disease" may occur in the USA?

Experts on the subject say it is extremely unlikely to occur here andeven if it doesit will be quickly contained. Cattle producers, feedmill operators and packing plant personnel are working closely with government (USDA, FDA) officials to keep this disease out of the U.S. and to prevent spread of the disease should it ever occur here. MCD can affect human health and its effects on beef salesshould it appear in Americawould be devastating to the beef industry.

Should supermarket operators fear that "Foot and Mouth Disease may occur in the USA?

Again, experts on the subject now believe we will dodge this bullet. Government officials acted very quickly in response to recent outbreaks of this disease in the United Kingdom and in Argentina and have programs in place to prevent entry of the disease into our country as well as to quickly contain it, if it does. FMD almost never affects humans, so it is not considered a human health or food safety issue. FMD occurrence in America would affect sales of beef, pork and lamb, decrease profitability of farming and ranching, and prevent the U.S. from exporting meat and offal to other countries.

What are the greatest vulnerabilities of supermarket meat departments to foodborne pathogens?

Ground beefbecause it may contain E. coli O157:H7remains a concern, but packers have done such a marvelous job of dramatically reducing incidence of foodborne pathogens on carcasses, cuts and trimmings that this is now almost a "back burner" issue at retail. Peg-board meat items can be infected with Listeria monocytogenes, but processing microbiological interventions (e.g., use of sodium lactate and sodium diacetate in formulations) have reduced most of the vulnerability in these products. Service counters and deli operations that sell hot foods, fully-prepared items and/or cold-sliced ready-to-eat meats canif improperly managed relative to sanitationbe vulnerable to problems with Salmonella spp., Campylobacter jejuni, Yersinia enterocolitica, Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes. Managing food safety in meat departments requires a mind set and complete dedication to following Good Manufacturing Practices.

Where is the supermarket industry on case-ready fresh meats?

Most assuredly, the industry is moving in the case-ready direction. Wal-mart has moved forcefully, using both Thomas E. Wilson and National/Farmland case-ready beef and pork steaks, chops, roasts, thin meats and ground meats. Some divisions of Kroger are selling case-ready beef and pork cuts supplied by the Excel Corporation. Many supermarkets still put most of their fresh red meat items on foam boards, overwrapped with PVC film, but have other cuts (veal, lamb, variety meats, high-lean beef grinds, slow-moving Natural/Organic cuts, etc.) in case-ready packages. Back-room labor issues have hastened the move to case-ready meats in geographic areas where there are shortages of personnel and slowed the move to case-ready fresh meats in geographic areas where union contracts preclude use of such technology. A second concern is that of storage-life/caselife of case-ready fresh meats. Depending on whether such cuts are prepared at packing plants or satellite centers, distribution and display times necessitate storage-life of six to 11 days; to accomplish that, beef needs to come from cattle fed Vitamin E in the feedlot or rosemary extract needs to be added to the blend during grinding. The issue of "high-oxygen" or "low-oxygen" modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) of case-ready fresh meats is company/operation-specific; proponents of "high ox" MAP give up some storage-life to avoid having to peel "low ox" packages and weigh/price/label at retail.

McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's have succumbed to pressure on animal rights; will supermarket companies be next?

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has forced the three largest quick-service restaurant companies to develop animal management and welfare guidelines for its suppliers of beef, pork, poultry, seafood and dairy products. While a McDonald's spokesman said the company's program was not one directed at animal rights (PETA believes that humans and animals have equal rights) but at animal welfare (assurance that animals are free from abuse, cruelty and neglect), it is obviously a concession to the "McCruelty To Go" campaign of PETA. Could the same pressure be applied to supermarkets? It could, and it probably will. Safeway is working with Dr. Temple Grandin, an animal behavior/well-being expert, to develop a farm-to-fork animal welfare program with objective, practical and rational measurement systems and quality assurance audits.

Will consumers pay a premium for beef promoted as lean, tender, nutritious, Natural or Organic?

They will pay a premium for lean in ground beef. If 73:27 (lean:fat) ground beef sells for $1.46 per pound, 80:20, 90:10 and 95:5on a point-of-lean basisground beef products should sell for $1.60, $1.80 and $1.90 per pound, yet actually sell for $1.98, $2.69 and $3.89 (June 2001 example prices).

Studies conducted by National Cattlemen's Beef Association, Kansas State University, Texas A&M University and Colorado State University demonstrate that, with USDA Quality Grade held constant, consumers will pay 50 to 60 cents per pound premium for "guaranteed" or "verified" tender beef. There is little or no premium for beef sold as "Natural" if the claim is made solely in compliance with the USDA requirements (minimally processed; no additives) for use of the term, but there are premiums of 50 cents to $3 per pound for "Natural" beef for which production-practice claims (no hormones; no antibiotics; fed vegetarian diets) are made.

Lack of availability of beef labeled "Organic" has not allowed adequate testing of retail price-points for such products but premiums of $2 to $4 per pound might reasonably be expected from the tiny portion of the people in the consuming public who would purchase Organic beef. "Nutritious" beef would not command a premium price at retail; beef is expected to be nutrient dense.

How many kinds (by grade or brand) of fresh beef are being offered and/or are ideal for U.S. supermarkets?

Ten years ago it was rare to see more than two kinds of fresh beef in self-service cases of supermarkets. Supermarkets usually offered beef of the USDA grade featured by that store plus either a high-quality product (e.g., Chef's Exclusive) or a "Natural" product (e.g., Maverick Lite Beef). Now supermarkets offer five kinds of fresh beef (steaks, roasts, thin meats, grinds); two or three of those in self-service cases (e.g., U.S. Select, Nolan Ryan's Tender Aged Beef, store brand Angus beef) and two or three in service cases (e.g., U.S. Prime, Certified Angus Beef, Sterling Silver). Obviously, decisions regarding how many kinds of beef to offer at a supermarket depend on shopper demographics, but the ideal mix at present appears to be a "Natural" beef line, a high-quality beef line and one othera company brand, a USDA Select or a USDA Choice line.

How can new capabilities for bar-code scanning improve profit performance in supermarket meat departments?

More complete data from out-scanning product (at the check-out stands) greatly improves the ability of meat market managers to run a more profitable operations. When fresh meat is sold exclusively in case-ready product form, the real benefits of scanning will be realized. That is so because every package of meat can then be in-scanned (on delivery) and out-scanned (at sale) allowing inventory controls useful for controlling "shrink." Minimization of shrink may well be the greatest potential benefit of moving to case-ready fresh meat.

Sources: http://ansci.colostate.edu; www.feedstuffs.com.

Beef: Questions & Answers is a joint project between MSU Extension and the Montana Beef Council. This column informs producers about current consumer education, promotion and research projects funded through the $1 per head checkoff. For more information, contact the Montana Beef Council at (406) 442-5111 or at beefcncl@mt.net

 

Return to regular view	Text-only	Updated: 08/29/2006