Taste, Versatility of U.S. Lamb Promoted at Major Mexican Supermarket Chain

USMEF conducted promotions at 16 Soriana supermarkets in Mexico to introduce recipes and cooking ideas for U.S. lamb

USMEF recently promoted the taste and versatility of U.S. lamb to supermarket customers in Mexico. Funding support for the campaigns, which focused on Soriana stores in the states of Nuevo Leon and Estado de Mexico, was provided by the American Lamb Board.

Tasting and information booths were set up at 16 retail outlets operated by Soriana, a major supermarket chain with more than 670 stores throughout Mexico. At each of the promotion locations, USMEF provided samples of U.S. lamb and distributed educational materials, recipes and suggestions on how to prepare U.S. lamb barbecue using various cooking styles.

After sampling U.S. lamb at a tasting promotion, a Soriana shopper goes to the meat case to make a purchase

According to Javier Garcia, USMEF retail manager in Mexico, the most popular lamb dish in Mexico is “barbacoa,” from which the term barbecue is derived. Mexican barbacoa is meat prepared in a way that allows it to be extremely tender and shred very easily. The dish can be made using many different types of meat, but fans of lamb typically use a lamb square cut.

Garcia noted that the Soriana campaign is a new approach to lamb promotion in Mexico’s retail sector.

“We were able to identify some good business opportunities during this initial campaign, and there are encouraging signs for growth of U.S. lamb in Mexico,” he said. “Many consumers who tasted our lamb samples asked if there are cooked lamb products available in the market, but right now there is just fresh lamb in the retail stores. So cooked lamb could have potential in the market, and we will explore that further while continuing to promote fresh U.S. lamb.”

Mexico is by far the leading international destination for U.S. lamb. In 2014, exports to Mexico totaled 8,773 metric tons valued at $14.8 million. Through August, 2015 exports stood at just over 5,000 metric tons with a value of $6.5 million. That’s about 16 percent behind last year’s pace.

The main competitors in the Mexican market are Australian and New Zealand lamb, which currently have a significant price advantage due to the weakness of these two countries’ currencies relative to the U.S. dollar. Mexico’s domestic lamb industry, while small, also captures some market share with niche offerings.