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Protein Industry Adapts to Pandemic-Driven Increase in E-Commerce

Protein industry brands saw e-commerce sales more than double for some products in 2020, and consumer trends indicate online meat buying won’t subside any time soon.

Phone Grocery
PMMI Business Intelligence, 2022 Meat, Poultry, Seafood & Alternative Proteins: Automation, Expansion, Sanitation

The popularity of online shopping increased significantly through the pandemic, and the protein industry is no exception.

Online consumer purchases of groceries increased 41% in 2021 because of the pandemic, and 45% of surveyed protein industry stakeholders are now engaged in e-commerce shipping, according to PMMI Business Intelligence’s 2022 report “Meat, Poultry, Seafood, & Alternative Proteins: Automation, Expansion, Sanitation.”

Consumers Adjusting to Online Meat-Buying

COVID-19 forced consumers to re-evaluate the way they purchase groceries. In a survey conducted by marketing agency Midan Marketing, 53% of shoppers stated they purchased meat or poultry online because of the pandemic.Grocery GraphPMMI Business Intelligence, 2022 Meat, Poultry, Seafood & Alternative Proteins: Automation, Expansion, Sanitation.

Online shopping experiences have improved since the early days of the pandemic, and 34% of shoppers said they would use an online option as their primary method of purchasing meat and poultry after the pandemic subsides. Consumers stated they prefer the convenience and safety of online shopping, while also noting improvement in the quality and consistency of the items chosen for them.

The online shift through the pandemic has been apparent on the manufacturing side as well.  A large national processor of meat, poultry, and fish found their e-commerce sales of frozen meat and seafood jumped 150% in 2020, an article from Food Processing said. Another large international meat and poultry product manufacturer saw an 89% jump in e-commerce orders from October to December 2020 when compared to the previous year, according to an article from Food Dive.

“People are way more comfortable with buying food online – COVID also got people really comfortable with having someone else pick out their food,” said a chief marketing officer at a poultry manufacturer.

Manufacturers Adapt to the Shift

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