Panel Discussion Examines International Opportunities for Niche Products

Exploring demand for specialized meat products such as “organic” or “natural” in key international markets was the topic of a panel discussion during Friday’s closing business session of the USMEF Strategic Planning Conference in Carlsbad, California.

“Opportunities and Challenges for International Niche Marketing” was moderated by Travis Arp, USMEF director of market access and exporter services. Participating in the discussion were Joel Haggard, USMEF senior vice president for the Asia Pacific, and Gerardo Rodriguez, USMEF director of marketing for Mexico, Central America and the Dominican Republic.

Arp noted that niche products are not often discussed by exporters, but income growth in many global markets and changing consumer attitudes have elevated the topic. But while a segment of consumers in the U.S. i drawn to these niche meat products, does that mean suppliers should expect the same overseas?

“There’s growing demand for products in the U.S. that are labeled antibiotic free, hormone free, beta agonist free – however, that poses many challenges as it relates to the international markets,” Arp said. “And then grass-fed, especially as it relates to our beef production, poses many hurdles internationally – especially when you consider the large volume of grain-fed beef that we export, which is largely demanded by importers and other international consumers.”

Arp noted that a huge challenge for exporters interested in entering the niche meat field internationally is meeting the various requirements of importing countries. He added that the U.S. and the European Union currently account for about 90 percent of global demand for organic food.

Haggard and Rodriguez presented examples from their respective markets of consumer attitudes on the niche items and discussed how these products are regulated by individual countries in these regions.

Similar to the U.S., the terms most frequently used when marketing niche meat products in Asia are organic, natural, antibiotic-free, hormone-free, grass-fed and sustainably raised. However, language transitions don’t make it easy to define the products. Japan, Taiwan, South Korea and China each have different approaches to the subject.

(from left) USMEF’s Travis Arp, Joel Haggard and Gerardo Rodriguez discuss issues related to international marketing of nice products

“There are wide differences in the laws about the claims that are made about these products, the labeling of products, the certification of products and, of course, the pricing of these products,” Haggard explained. “How a red meat product is marketed in a country depends on the regulations and requirements of that country.”

Haggard made it clear that there are some consumers in Asia willing to pay steep prices for niche meat products, pointing to specialty beef and pork items that sell for more than $100 per pound in high-end retail stores.

On the other hand, Rodriguez said the majority of Latin American consumers have been eating grass-fed beef their entire lives because, “that’s all we really had there, that’s what we were used to. For people in our region, we do not understand paying higher prices for this kind of meat.”

In other words, most consumers don’t see grass-fed products as special and are unlikely to pay a premium for niche products. Rodriguez said Latin American consumers who have access to grain-fed beef have embraced it as part of their daily diets.

“In Mexico, for example, the southern part of the country is still very much a grass-fed area, while the northern region tends to favor grain-fed beef.”