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REPORTER: Consumer Dollars Target High Quality Beef
This article was originally featured in the Spring 2023 Edition of Urner Barry’s Reporter magazine. Want a FREE subscription? Click HERE.
While market participants have their eyes focused on quite a few things, one thing that’s never looked over is consumer trends. This is one area where ranchers, producers and everyone in between have been able to stay ahead of the curve. Consumer trends are constantly evolving with the times and this is highlighted all over the industry, whether that be a branded program such as Certified Angus Beef, Grassfed, or Organic...
REPORTER: Despite Steep Costs, Consumers Still Spending at Deli
It would be an understatement to say consumers are laying out more money than ever before. Inflation and all that comes with it have dominated the news cycles for months and the end doesn’t necessarily appear near—at least at the time of this publication. This uptick, coinciding with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), has shocked many in the turkey industry for the better part of the year...
REPORTER: Supply Chain Disruptions Easing But Has Shifted Port Demand
There were many problems that supply chain and logistics managers had to contend with since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic when Wuhan, China, shutdown. These include labor shortages, port congestion, broken supply chains, increased transit times, detention and demurrage fees, as well as limited warehouse space. It almost became a constant barrage of black swan events that kept the pressure on not only the agriculture industry...
REPORTER: The New Frontier of Protein: Cell-Cultivated Meat
On the surface, cultivated meat sounds like something out of a science fiction movie. Meat grown in bioreactors to create a cut of steak or a fish fillet. It sounds like something Luke Skywalker or someone aboard the USS Enterprise would chow down on.
However, it may not be long before cellcultivated meat products are on grocery store shelves or restaurant menus in the United States. Industry leaders expect the...
Urner Barry's Spring 2023 Reporter Issue Released; Read It Online For Free Now
Check out a brand new issue of Urner Barry's Reporter!
The spring 2023 edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine features our special State of the Seafood Industry: An Annual Review, an in-depth look at what's going on with some of the markets within the seafood industry. Plus, learn more about cell-cultivated meat; how supply chain disruptions are easing but has shifted port demand; and if genetically modified chicken is the answer to HPAI.
Read Volume 18, Number 2 of Urner Barry's Reporter for free here.
REPORTER: Is The Future of Self-Checkout in Limbo?
This article was originally featured in the Winter 2023 Edition of Urner Barry’s Reporter magazine. Want a FREE subscription? Click HERE.
The days may be numbered for selfcheckout in retail stores. The problems are getting bigger, the losses are increasing, and retailers are frustrated.
Wegmans Food Markets decided to eliminate their scan and go self-checkout in September 2022 due to several losses from theft. Will other retailers follow suit?
An email was sent to the users of the Wegmans SCAN app that said...
REPORTER: Food Trends in Focus in 2023
If anything, the food industry is resilient. After spending much of the last three years battling the COVID-19 pandemic, the focus has shifted to record inflation and a potential recession heading into 2023.
With questions about rising food prices and the impact it will have on consumer food spending habits, industry experts are expecting social media, classic menu items and sustainable protein options to play a key role in the...
REPORTER: Convenience Stores Could Be The New Quick-Service Restaurant
Step aside fast-food restaurants, convenience stores are taking the spotlight. With hot and ready-toeat meals, they are offering cheaper alternatives than what you may find at your local quick-service chain.
Convenience stores are the typical go-to store to get a pack of gum or bag of chips when stopping at the gas station, or even during a road trip to grab a quick bite...
Urner Barry's Winter 2023 Reporter Issue Released; Read It Online For Free Now
HPAI is in focus in the winter 2023 edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine. This issue features not only Urner Barry's HPAI white paper, but in-depth articles on how HPAI is continuing to boost ham's popularity; and if culling birds is a sustainable answer to avian influenza. Plus, take a look at 2023 food trends and much more!
Read Volume 18, Number 1 of Urner Barry's Reporter for free here.
REPORTER: Will AB5 Spread Across the U.S.?
This article was originally featured in the Fall 2022 Edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine. Want a FREE subscription? Click HERE.
The trucking industry has taken its lumps over the last several years be it due to the COVID-19 pandemic, lack of drivers, chaos at ports due to ongoing supply chain issues, and other factors. Now comes the potential impact of a bill that has been around for a couple of years and is finally starting to make significant waves in California, the state where it was enacted. It’s called...
REPORTER: Meat Industry Looks to Automation to Solve Labor Woes
Players within the poultry industry have certainly had their fair share of challenges to contend with over the past two years. While inclement weather, cyberattacks, disease, along with rising feed and freight costs, have undoubtedly resulted in some sleepless nights, one variable which continues to rattle just about every processor and plant manager is the dreaded “L” word...labor. As the country gradually recovers from the pandemic...
REPORTER: Egg Replacements Are Mostly Off The Menu After This Year’s Bird Flu
When highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) began to spread in the spring of this year, so too did concerns about the potential for demand destruction in the egg-products sector. Harkening back to the bird flu of 2015, egg processors were fearful that high prices and a lack of availability would once again prompt food manufacturers and foodservice operators to reduce or remove the amount of...
REPORTER: The Scariest Thing This Season? High Prices
There is no denying that the pandemic changed the way we shop for groceries. According to the Adobe Digital Economy Index report released in March, in 2020 online grocery sales increased 103% year-over-year to $73.7 billion. And while it was initially a safer way to shop, it also became a more convenient way to shop. Even when restrictions were lifted, shoppers continued to grocery shop online...
Urner Barry's Fall 2022 Reporter Issue Released; Read It Online For Free Now
"Inflation continues to haunt the nation" in the fall 2022 edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine. This issue features a deep dive into what a recession means from Urner Barry's Consulting team. Plus, as always, there is plenty of can't miss content from our team of market reporters -- like a look at the historic ride of pork back ribs by pork market reporter Russell Barton and how the scallop market is under pressure by seafood market reporter Lorin Castiglione.
Read Volume 17, Number 4 of Urner Barry's Reporter for free here.
REPORTER: Automation in the Trucking Industry Ramps Up as Supply Chain Issues Linger
This article was originally featured in the Summer 2022 Edition of Urner Barry's Reporter magazine. Want a FREE subscription? Click HERE.
The supply chain front is as perplexing as ever. One moment the logjams are improving, but then the next there is an exorbitant number of ships idling once again outside the Port of Los Angeles. Even as this situation persists in the supply chain, the show must go on for the trucking industry. And that is apparent when talking about Highly Automated Vehicles (HAVs)...
REPORTER: Former MLB Pitcher Todd Stottlemyre Dives Into Poke Concept
For World Series champion Todd Stottlemyre, entering the foodservice industry wasn’t something he was interested in.
Stottlemyre heard the war stories of former athletes getting into the foodservice industry and how some of those ventures didn’t have a storybook ending.
However, he was convinced to take a lunch and check out a restaurant concept. “I thought at least I’ll get a meal out of it,” he said frankly...
REPORTER: How Brand Loyalty is Being Affected by Inflation
With inflation causing grocery prices to rise, customers may be swapping out their usual brands for the more inexpensive options on the shelves. This is leading some to question customer loyalty to brands and how brands can keep shoppers returning to them.
The rise in grocery prices is causing consumers to find smarter ways to shop and save. Brands with customer loyalty rewards, promotions, and discounts have a...
REPORTER: The Metaverse is Helping the Food Industry Engage With Their Consumers
Fast-food brands are trying to understand the marketing potential of the metaverse by testing their companies in the virtual world. Just one question... what is the metaverse?
Facebook was recently rebranded to Meta, and now is focused on becoming the “metaverse.” However, asking what is the metaverse is kind of like asking what the internet is. The metaverse is a digital environment where people create...
REPORTER: Summer Travel on the Comeback Trail
For the first time in two years, normal summer travel trends are expected to return. With the CDC removing mask mandates and many COVID restrictions a thing of the past, many are ready to take normal vacations and travel somewhere during summer break.
During the onset of the pandemic, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint travel numbers showed screenings drop to 244,000 on May 16, 2020. A year later, that number jumped...
Urner Barry's Summer 2022 Reporter Issue Released; Read It Online For Free Now
The summer 2022 edition is our special annual analysis market issue, featuring insights from Urner Barry's team of market reporters. The summer issue includes stories about shoppers feeling the heat as prices continue to rise.
Read Volume 17, Number 3 of Urner Barry's Reporter for free here.
Not a subscriber? Sign up for free! Click here to subscribe to Urner Barry’s Reporter, the quarterly newsmagazine for the food industry professional. The Reporter delivers interesting and informative articles for the poultry, egg, red meat and seafood industries.
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ANALYSIS: A Suprising Season: Unraveling the Dynamics of the 2023 Pork Belly Market
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ANALYSIS: Frozen Beef Inventory Continues to Decline; Pork Stocks Edge Higher
ANALYSIS: Turkey Poult Placements Signal Ongoing Production Slump