March 19, 2020

US poultry producers to process more chicken amid COVID-19 crisis

The companies are also shifting supplies from restaurants to grocery stores and are adding more shifts to slaughterhouse operations as demand for the meat has increased due to COVID-19, reported Reuters.

Major US poultry producers like Sanderson Farms aims to produce more chicken targeted towards retail over the weekend, as Pilgrim's Pride and Perdue Farms have moved chicken meat towards supermarkets with restaurants have closed on state orders.

Mike Cockrell, Sanderson Farms' chief financial officer said demand is growing and the company will review daily the need for more tray pack volume. The company projects to operate two shifts of employees at its five chicken slaughterhouses meant for grocery stores to meet increased demand.

According to Nielsen data, sales for chicken were 4.5% greater in dollars compared to a year prior in the one-week period that ended March 7, 2020.

Analysts said consumers prefer chicken as it is cheaper and freezes better compared to other meats. The USDA said there is 957.5 million pounds of frozen chicken inventories this year, a record high.

The biggest refrigerated storage company in the world, Lineage Logistics said its retail segment total volumes have jumped to 50% from 20% around the world because of increased consumer demand.

-      Reuters