CHICAGO- Food insight company Technomic recently released its “2017 Center of the Plate: Poultry Consumer Trend Report.” According to the report, chicken is still the protein of choice for consumers while turkey shows room to grow.
Increased use at breakfast and for snacking bolstered chicken consumption while turkey consumption still centers around the holidays. However, 39 percent of consumers that eat turkey said they’re more likely to eat turkey throughout the year now than they were two years ago.
“Chicken’s adaptability will be on full display over the next few years as operators increasingly highlight this healthy protein across dayparts”, explains Kelly Weikel, director of consumer insights at Technomic. “For turkey, operators will work to menu this protein in a way that is new and intriguing, but still leverages turkey’s positioning as a familiar and healthy standby.”
Key findings of the report include:
• 47 percent of consumers say it’s important for restaurants to be transparent about where they source their poultry.
• 45 percent of consumers who eat chicken strongly agree that restaurants should offer more chicken entrees with ethnic flavors.
• 38 percent of consumers who eat turkey would like restaurants to offer turkey as a protein choice for a wider variety of entrees.
