Why are people buying, and eating, chicken? Cathy Isom looks into this question letting us know what seems to be driving more people to eat more chicken. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours.
People are Eating More Chicken
Americans are eating more chicken and in record numbers. More than 9 in 10 consumers purchase chicken regularly. That’s according to a recent survey commissioned by the National Chicken Council. According to the survey, chicken consumption in the United States remains high, and consumers are hungry for more information about the chicken they purchase.
In the two weeks leading up to the survey, 86% of consumers said they ate a chicken meal or snack purchased from a supermarket, and 68% ate a chicken meal or snack from a foodservice establishment. The supermarket and 
foodservice establishment consumption numbers both increased — 2.3% and 1.5%, respectively — and are at parity with those seen just a couple of years ago. The majority of consumers (89%) said they want more information about the chicken they buy and eat, and 57% would look for that information on the product package. If provided with more information on these and other aspects, 62% said they would purchase more chicken, the survey found.
According to the USDA, Americans are expected to eat a record 93 pounds of chicken per person in 2018. However, fewer survey respondents are citing health benefits as the reason they choose chicken over other types of meat.
I’m Cathy Isom…
Read more about National Chicken Council’s Survey.