Dive Brief:
- The beef jerky market is expanding as consumers demand high protein and low fat snacks, and companies like Three Jerks Jerky are breaking into it. Its product is 100% filet mignon, with flavors including chipotle adobo and maple bourbon churro.
- The company doesn’t plan to offer more than its current roster of five flavors, but may rotate new flavors in and out of the product mix, according to Food Business News.
- A $100,000 investment by "Shark Tank’s" Daymond John also brought his connections, including Rastelli Foods Group, which supplies the raw product for the company.
Dive Insight:
Technavio’s research finds the global meat snacks market will grow at a CAGR of 8.79% between 2016 and 2020.
Artisan jerky producers have been giving established jerky producers a run for their money during the past decade, introducing innovative bold flavors and better-for-you options that resonate with consumers. A combination of unique flavors and the sourcing of filet mignon and other premium meats can provide companies such as Three Jerks Jerky with an edge in the market.
Large food companies are taking notice of small meat snacks producers. Earlier this year, EPIC Provisions was purchased by General Mills. And Hershey is making good on its Krave acquisition, as it will come out with jerky this summer in flavors like black cherry barbecue, basil citrus, and pineapple orange, reports Quartz.
And investors like Daymond John are funding promising companies. Sunrise Strategic Partners, an accelerator of emerging brands, has taken a minority investment in Perky Jerky, a maker of all natural, premium beef and turkey meat snacks.
"What was once a fringe category targeting young men, and those following a primal or paleo diet, this double-digit growth and the recent acquisitions indicate our category is finally getting attention by the mainstream," Joshua and Zora Tabin, co-founders of Wild Zora, told Food Dive in an e-mail.