SAN ANTONIO – The week ended April 12 saw both shopping for the Easter holiday and the sixth week of shopping trends impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, again resulting in record-breaking sales for the week compared to the same time frame in 2019. 

For the week ended April 12, sales in the meat department were up 43% according to a report compiled by 210 Analytics and IRI –up two points from the week before, which saw a sales increase of 41%.  

While sales were impacted by the Easter holiday, most celebrations across the United States were different than in years past, with much smaller gatherings.  

During the week of April 12, every meat and poultry category continued to sell above typical levels. In specific categories, turkey was up 60%, beef was up 42%, pork was up 37%, chicken was up 19% and lamb was up 108%.  

Within those categories, beef and chicken still account for the largest dollar sales with beef selling an additional $188 million compared to the same timeframe in 2019, and chicken generating $43 million more. Ground proteins also continue to perform well with ground beef up 35.8%, ground turkey up 34.4%, ground chicken up 28.1% and ground pork up 38%. 

Looking forward, Anne-Marie Roerink, president of 210 Analytics, said it’s hard to predict what the new normal is going to look like. 

“Reality is that it is too early to tell,” Roerink said. “There has not been a good indicator week yet of what will be the ‘new normal.’ Mid-March had the enormous panic purchasing surge, followed by subsequent social distancing and shelter-in-place surges. Next were the two weeks leading up to Easter. In the upcoming two weeks, sales will go up against Easter 2019, which fell on April 21, which yet again complicates any sense of normalcy and data predictions.”