In 2021, the total turnover of Turkey’s processed meat market grew by 25% to TRY 4.1 billion, and interest in healthy and ecological products increased.
According to the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) statistics on animal production, the total number of animals at the end of 2021 rose by 4.55% compared to last year to 75.5 million heads. The number of bovine animals was 18 million 36 thousand. The number of ovine animals increased by 6.3% compared to the previous year to 57 million 519 thousand. During this period, among ovine animals, there was a 7.2% increase in the number of sheep (TurkStat, Husbandry Statistics, December 2021).
MEAT PRODUCTION
In 2021, the total turnover of Turkey’s processed meat market grew by 25% compared to the previous year to TRY 4.1 billion. Growth in tonnage terms was 3%. By volume, the processed meat products market consisted of 31% salami, 21% sausage, and 41% soudjouk products (Nielsen, Turkey excluding BİM). During the year, the market witnessed a 20% growth in tonnage and a 43% growth in turnover, especially in the salami segment (Nielsen, Entire Turkey, 2021).
The number of slaughtered turkeys was 5.1 million, with turkey meat production at 51,301 tons (TurkStat, 2021, Poultry Production, December 2021).
CHANGING CONSUMPTION HABITS
As in all sub-categories of the food industry, lifestyle changes, the rise in healthy and immune-boosting nutritional trends, and awareness of sustainability and the environment have brought about changes in the meat industry. New trends have emerged together with these lifestyle changes. In addition, vegetarian and vegan diets have become increasingly popular in many developing countries for health and ecological reasons.
In 2021, consumers were observed to lean towards high-quality and immune-enhancing diets. While the demand for organic and healthy nutrition increased, there was a simultaneous rise in dietary habits involving vegetable-based protein and animal protein sources. In terms of grocery shopping, consumers began to pay more attention to the price and quality of the product in their purchasing decisions and preferred stores (online/offline) that provide the most significant cost advantages. The brand's sensitivity to the environment, animal rights, and equality have become a significant criterion for consumers when it comes to brand selection (Growth from Knowledge: Behaviour Change Report, June 2021).
With the increase in time spent at home due to the pandemic and the transfer of consumption to a domestic environment, households' domestic spending increased by 37% compared to the previous year. The number of meals cooked at home increased by 40% due to restaurants' closure and hygiene concerns. While preserving traditional flavors, different alternatives of these flavors that can be prepared quickly were offered to consumers. While the channels, including online shopping, grew their share in shopping preferences that changed with the pandemic, decreases were observed in the percentile that includes grocery stores (Ipsos Turkey Barometer, 2021)
INCREASE IN E-COMMERCE SALES
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, e-commerce sales, which grew by 25.7% worldwide in 2020, further increased their growth rate in 2021. Due to the impact of the pandemic in the first quarter of 2021, home deliveries increased worldwide by 37% compared to the previous year, and takeaways by 8%.
Four out of every five individuals worldwide used e-commerce due to the impact of the pandemic (TÜBİSAD Transformative Power of the Economy: E-commerce Impact Analysis 2020 Report). Consumers increasingly started to prefer online channels to meet their everyday needs in Turkey. As consumers turned to bulk shopping through e-commerce channels, it was observed that fewer daily purchases were made (Nielsen Shopper Shifts to a New Normal Report, 2020 Turkey).
The e-commerce volume in Turkey, which reached TRY 226.2 billion in 2020, reached TRY 161 billion in the first six months of 2021, marking a 75.6% rise compared to the same period of the previous year. Regarding distribution in the industry, the food and supermarket segment, which witnessed a two-fold increase in credit/debit card transactions, was the fastest-growing segment at TRY 6.18 billion (Ministry of Commerce – ETBIS Data for the First 6 Months of 2021).