Source: Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 7/17/17
The chicken industry needs to better communicate and engage with consumers who are increasingly smart and skeptical in order to close the widening gap between perception and reality of how food gets on their plates.
The reality, Pilgrim’s Pride President and CEO Bill Lovette, told attendees here at the Chicken Marketing Summit, is that by 2050 there will be 2.2 billion more mouths to feed, meaning food production must grow by 70 percent in a little more than 30 years. He noted the United States is one of the few places on Earth with the means to help get that done.
“Another reality is that consumer perception is growing further and further away from the truth,” as the U.S. population has shifted away from an agrarian society, Lovette said. “Consumers just don’t understand what we do, and we have to take responsibility for part of that.”
Lovette addressed consumer perceptions around “Big Ag,” animal welfare and labeling.
More than half of U.S. consumers believe that large corporations own farms, for example, when in reality 98 percent of U.S. farms are family-owned and 88 percent of those are small family farms, he said.
Some 56 percent of consumers are unable to cite a source for animal welfare information, and those who can mostly refer to animal welfare activist websites. Meanwhile, 68 percent believe the chicken industry raises broilers in cages. The reality, Lovette said, is the industry does not raise broilers in cages and it operates under widely adopted animal welfare guidelines against which USDA performs audits.
There is, meanwhile, a consumer perception that slower-growing breeds (4 to 6 pounds, 81 days to market weight vs. 48 days) are healthier than faster-growing birds. Reality, he said, is chickens are hand-selected to grow faster, stronger and healthier than ever and that conversion to slower-growing chickens would result in 35 percent less birds, 34 percent more feed, 40 percent more water (gallon per bird), 53 percent more manure, and nearly 50 percent more cost.
“I’m not saying we should disagree with consumers,” Lovette said. “I’m saying we should communicate with consumers.”
And that is particularly true when it comes to labeling claims, as one out of five new products in the United States has some sort of clean-label claim. Eighty percent of consumers say they look at labels and food claims, but only 33 percent of them say they are well-informed about claims such as hormone-free and antibiotic free.
“We must take a responsibility for a lot of that confusion,” Lovette said, using the “No antibiotics ever” claim verified by USDA as the best example of the industry simplifying the message for consumers. “It leaves no question in the consumer’s mind as to what it is. The more we confuse consumers, the less they trust us.”
Lovette shared the following as best practices:
• Don’t sell your story, tell it with transparency and heart
• See it through their eyes
• It’s not about being right, its about respect of choice
• Fearlessly take on the issue, but let values lead the conversation
• Respond with speed and balance
• Empower people to advocate and innovate
For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.
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