Dive Brief:
- Manufacturers are struggling to keep up with demand for local meat products, according to a recent survey from Farm to Institution New England and an article on Meatingplace.
- Consumers' trust in the food system is on the rise, having increased from 34% to 40% of consumers believing the food industry is heading in the right direction, Center for Food Integrity found.
- Public funding for R&D in agriculture is also on the rise with a number of bailouts this year compared to growth between $3 million and $4 million over about 30 years' time.
Dive Insight:
Local food has often been more of a consideration for produce than meat. But as consumers become more cognizant and concerned about animal welfare and how ingredients are sourced, local meat is likely to continue to become more important.
The issue is availability of ingredients, including meat. As much as consumers might want their products to be made with ingredients grown close to home, factors like climate and land availability can impact whether farmers can raise certain ingredients in an area close by.
Consumers often associate the location of an ingredient source with how fresh it is. Freshness has become an important quality to food makers ranging from meat to processed foods, despite the nature of their production.
Price continues to play a major role in meat purchases, but other factors like transparency or use of antibiotics or growth hormones also influence purchase decisions. Manufacturers have varied in their response to this demand, with some reducing or removing their antibiotics use.