Chinese consumers are increasingly coming around to the idea of purchasing packaged chicken, and that has shown as sales of Tyson Foods’ tray pack chicken in China have grown 60 percent over the last year, said Sally Grimes, Tyson Foods chief global growth officer.
Speaking during the Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) conference on February 21, Grimes noted that in the wake of the spread of avian influenza in both poultry and humans in China, as well as other food safety scandals, food safety and trust are of increasing importance to Chinese consumers, which traditionally have been more prone to purchasing their poultry through live markets instead of buying processed chicken at grocery stores.
“As we’ve been transforming our China business. We’ve gone deep into understanding local needs,” said Grimes.
One example of how Tyson Foods has been researching Chinese consumer needs and values has resulted in Tyson’s transparency program. Under the program, a shopper can take a smartphone and scan a stamped code on the packaging of a Tyson chicken product. Grimes said with that simple scan, the consumer can see “the farm where the chicken came from, how far it traveled and even a picture of the farmer who raised the chicken.”
“The results have been phenomenal,” Grimes said, mentioning that tray pack chicken sales in China have grown 60 percent.
Those sales could grow even more, as concerns over the spread of avian influenza have prompted authorities to temporarily close live poultry markets in Changsha (Hunan), Guangzhou (Guangdong), Suining (Sichuan) and throughout Zhejiang province.
