Differences in qualitative aspects of broiler meat demand in Spain. Part I: Home Consumption

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1 1 Differences in qualitative aspects of broiler meat demand in Spain. Part I: Home Consumption A. Colom 1, M. Gosálvez 2, M. Clop 1, X. Averós 2, F. Juárez 1, L. Gosálvez 2 1 University of Lleida, Department of Business Administration and Economic Management of Natural Resources, Spain. Phone: ; Fax: ; antonio.colom@aegern.udl.es 2 University of Lleida, Department of Animal Production, Spain. Phone: ; Fax: ; lfgosalvez@prodan.udl.es Abstract To know the Spanish homes reasons of purchasing broiler meat a survey of 1,000 families, by means of a 13 question interview, was carried out during After processing the information it was concluded that Spanish families purchase food an average of 2.34 times/week, 95 of which do not exceed 100 and, with the exception of more than 400 purchases, in more than 90 of which broiler meat accounts for more than 14 of the spent budget. Broiler meat is bought near home, in butcher s shops or supermarkets, with purchases via telephone or the internet being marginal. The main declared benefits of consuming broiler meat were the low fat content, being a healthy meat, and being proper in a healthy diet. Surprisingly, 72 of interviewees did not see any benefit in chicken meat or did not answer to that question, contrasting with the fact that only 20 of interviewees admitted low price as a benefit. Most of the Spanish families do not feel influenced by the media and/or advertising campaigns, what would support the hypothesis that they purchase broiler meat as a shelter product, due to its quality and price competitiveness. Keywords Home demand, Broiler, Meat Consumption. I. INTRODUCTION Broiler productive traits make its meat quality and price (Table 1) very competitive with respect to other animal protein sources, being worldwide accepted to be a shelter product for low budgets. According to the OECD world broiler meat production will reach 75 million tonnes in 2008; annual production increases always exceed 2, with countries such as China and Brazil reaching values of 6. This prediction is affected by strong national production capacity differences, with the USA still being the first world producer (19.1 million T/year), consumer (45 kg/person and year), and exporter (2.8 T/year). EU-25 and China are also important producers (11.6 and 10.7 T/year respectively); nevertheless EU- 25 is also a major exporter (1.2 million T/year), whereas China is a broiler meat importer. Brazil s annual production has increased above 5 during the last 10 years, currently producing 8.5 T/year, and exporting more than 20 of its production. Russia is the first world importer (above 1 million T/year) but is currently developing a self-sufficiency plan. UK, France, and Spain are the main EU-25 producers, with a joint production above 5 T/year. During 2007 the Spanish broiler meat production was 1,081 T (Table 1), with a major influence on the primary, transformation, and distribution sectors (AECOC). Broiler meat is also a major product for Spanish consumers, with annual consumption above 20 kg/person and year (Alimarket; Table 2), what places Spain among the medium/high consumer countries in the world context (Spanish Agriculture Ministry, MAPA). On the other hand, and according to different authors (Koehler, 1997; Windhorst, 2003), EU broiler production sector will have to confront the fierce competition of other regions which have lower production costs, due to different reasons such as reduced feed costs, a lack of environmental or animal welfare regulations (Zoot. Int. Ed., 1996), and lower labour costs. In 2007 Spanish population was millions people. Taking into account different aspects such as immigration or tourism, aggregate population was 47.5 million people. This population is grouped in 15.9 million families, with 190,000 bars/cafés, 61,000 restaurants, 20,500 hotels/camping sites, and 10,000 institutional canteens (FEHR). The quantitative analysis of the Spanish production and demand is well documented thanks to the Agriculture Statistics Official Bulletins, the MAPA Consumption Panel, and the Alimarket Yearbooks and

2 2 Monographs ( ). Nevertheless, little is known about subjective and qualitative aspects of consumption. For this reason MAPA and the Broiler Inter-trade Association (PROPOLLO) started monitoring the Spanish broiler meat and products consumption habits in The main objective of this annual study is to adjust Spanish supply and demand, providing with important information for Spanish broiler producers in order to supply with a differentiated product with respect to other competitors, and as a defense measure against imports of products different from the Spanish consumers demands. The aim of this work is to present some of the main differences between the broiler meat consumption in Spanish homes and establishments in Due to its length, work has been divided into two communications: the first one containing a general introduction and home results, and the second one with the establishments consumption and general discussion. Table 1. values in Spanish broiler meat production parameters (2007) Broiler production (millions) Feed Conversion Ratio (kg feed/kg live weight) 1.9 Mortality () 4.0 Num slaughtered broilers (millions) carcass weight (kg) 1.87 Carcass production (T) 1,081.2 Quartering (T) Table 2. Annual evolution of the Spanish broiler meat average consumption per capita Home consumption Broiler meat Broiler meat products Bars/Restaurants/Hotels consum ** Catering/Institutions consum. * * Total (Kg/person) (*)In 2003 and 2004 Institutions consumption was included in Bars/Restaurants/Hotels consumption. (**)Bars/Cafés 1.12; Restaurants 1.00; Others 0.24 kg/person and year. II. MATERIAL AND METHODS One thousand randomly chosen homes were surveyed, via telephone interview, during The Spanish territorial distribution was taken into account in order to avoid regional differences, and therefore proportional percentages of the interviews were made in the North/North-Western, Central, Southern, Eastern, and North-Eastern regions. Interviews included 13 questions with the aim to determine home characteristics and qualitative aspects that determined the broiler meat consumption. A database was created to compute the information, which was analysed using the Excel software. Comparisons were made by means of Chi-Square tests using the SAS package software. III. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION A. Home Characteristics Tables 3 and 4 show the characteristics of the 400 interviewed homes, representing a total of 1,183 persons. Table 3. Distribution of age groups percentage, and average amount of people in each interviewed home Age of consumer < 4 years a 15 years a 30 years a 45 years a 65 years 27.3 > 65 years 17.8 (people / home) 2.96 Results (Table 3) show a trend towards homes with a low number of members, with most of regional values being lower than 3, although the average value was slightly higher than that of 2006 MAPA Panel (2.71 people/home). Most of people were between 46 and 56 years old (27.3), reflecting the trend to have children at older ages, and only in the Southern region the percentage of individuals between 16 and 30 years was higher.

3 3 Table 4. Academic education in the Spanish homes Academic education University education 29.2 Vocational training education 10.0 Secondary school education 19.0 Primary school education 23.8 No education 17.9 People currently employed 45.5 (employed people / home) 1.37 It is surprising the high percentage of people with a university education (almost one third, Table 4) and the low number of people with a vocational training education, being the lowest education percentage in all the regions. Almost half of members of the homes were employed at the moment of the interview (half 2007), although current ratio is lower. These data clearly represent the social image of education, giving importance to university education and undervaluing the vocational training education, what in no doubt should be a cause for concern of the Spanish Administration. B. Home provision of broiler meat Tables 5 and 6 show Spanish homes food provision habits. Families purchase food an average of 2.34 times/week, 95 of which to the value of less than 100. Weekly purchases of more than 200 represent a very small percentage, so that a food purchase for more than 200 is never repeated before two weeks. When purchasing food (Table 6) families almost always buy broiler meat, except for the cases of more than 400 purchases, when broiler meat is bought only in 50 of cases. Additionally, when broiler meat is bought represents more than 14 of the total purchase budget. It is therefore observed, agreeing with MAPA, that families tend to allocate their food budget among several weekly purchases, spending little money in each purchase. Nevertheless MAPA data accentuate this trend, showing that Spanish homes buy food 17 times/month, spending an average of 16.9 each time. MAPA data also show that families are changing their habits, since in 2001 they purchased food an average of 5.5 times/week. This might be due to the fact that Spanish families have very little time left for household chores, as well as the fact that most of Spanish homes attempt to save money with daily purchases, in order to minimize food wastage and great expenditures. Table 5. Frequency and average amount of home food purchases How often do you buy food? Times/week 2.34 Amount of each purchase > < Table 6. food purchases and importance of broiler meat, with respect to purchase amount Purchase amount (Euros) Purchases (week/home) DON T buy broiler meat () Broiler meat with respect to total purchase budget () > < It was in parallel detected that homes consumption of broiler products remained invariable or increased (Table 7), disagreeing with the official MAPA data that showed a decrease in meat consumption during the period, although an increase in meat products consumption was also detected (15.5 vs. 13.8, and 1.8 vs. 2.6 kg/person and year respectively). Table 7. Changes in homes consumption ( citations) Changes in your broiler meat consumption? 2003 survey 2007 survey Has increased Remains constant Has decreased 10 7

4 4 Spanish families (Table 8) are in the habit of purchasing food in traditional shops, with other methods of food provision being practically nonexistent, particularly via the internet. Logically, when purchasing food most of families go to traditional shops or supermarkets close to their homes. Our data generally agree with those of MAPA, who found similar differences although values for traditional shops were 10 lower. Nevertheless, future food provision via the use of new technologies should not be discarded, since current customers behaviour could be attributed to the fact that these new ways of food provisioning are not fully developed, with few food suppliers having these new services, and to a lack of confidence in the quality and security offered. Table 8. Spanish home food provision Where do you purchase food? Citations Hipermarket 14 Supermarket and Discount 42 Traditional shop 39 Others 5 How do you purchase food? Citations Personally in shop 96 Telephone 2 Internet 0.7 Others 1.3 The average amount of fresh broiler meat consumed at homes was 13.8 kg/person and year, with frozen broiler meat being practically non existent (MAPA). Percentage distribution of the most accepted presentations in Spanish homes consumption is shown in Table 9, with the emergence of a specialized demand to the detriment of the purchase of entire carcasses, the latter currently representing less than 45 of broiler purchases. This might be explained by the reduction in time spent cooking and even by the maximum use of products, with broiler breasts representing more than 25 of the total home purchases, what has clear industrial effects (Goodwin et al., 2003). Home consumption of processed broiler meat averages 2.55 kg/person and year (MAPA), with percentage consumption of the different presentations shown in Table 10. Table 9. Preferences in home consumption of non processed broiler meat Home consumption of non processed broiler meat consumption Entire or eviscerated broiler Cut up broiler Quartered broiler 1.45 Entire or filleted breasts Broiler legs 5.80 Broiler thighs 5.07 Broiler wings 2.17 Carcasses for soup - Total quartering 65.8 Despite the existence of fresh presentations, frozen products have raised importance, representing the 30 of total consumption. It is clear the percentage importance of sausages in the fresh products section, while croquettes and roast broiler (15.2) are main frozen products. It is also observed the increasing demand of ready-cooked broiler products, reflecting the aforementioned trend to fewer time dedicated to cooking. Table 10. Preferences in home broiler processed products consumption Type of processed broiler meat consumed in your home? Cooked broiler products 2.94 Smoked broiler 0.16 Broiler nuggets 4.99 Broiler roast 1.26 Broiler sausages Total fresh processed products Marinated broiler breasts 3.22 Baked quartered breasts 0.16 Marinated broiler legs 0.31 Roast broiler Breaded broiler filled 3.34 Broiler wings 3.30 Broiler nuggets 3.02 Broiler croquettes Total frozen processed products Ready-cooked meals Soups and broths 0.04 Total preserves 19,63 consumption C. Home opinions and suggestions about broiler meat Table 11 shows the benefits chosen by the interviewees, and in which purchases were based of citations stated that broiler meat is leaner than other meats, therefore being healthy and suitable for diets. Surprisingly, very few interviewees stated as a benefit the low price of broiler meat.

5 5 Table 11. Positive aspects of broiler meat according to Spanish homes Benefits of broiler meat? citations Lean / Healthy / Dietetic 41.8 Easy to fillet / Cook 12.5 Digestive / Mild / Soft 10.3 Pleasant taste / Tasty 22.3 Price / Cheaper than other meats 20.0 Softer/ Easy to eat 2.5 Cooking versatility 13.0 Suitable for children 2.8 Varied diet 13.0 Others 0.3 No benefits 4.5 N/A 7.3 As shown in Table 12 more than 72 of home consumers found no clear disadvantages. Important negative attributes are broiler meat being drier and more insipid than other meats, followed by fear of animal diseases or poultry not being properly fed, although both of them were of minor importance. Table 12. Negative aspects of broiler meat according to Spanish homes Disadvantages of broiler meat? Citations Drier and more insipid than other meats 12.8 Need to remove skin and fat / Wastage 2.3 It is sold packed 0.5 Diet / Health reasons 1.0 Animal Diseases / Hormones / Feed 5.3 Size reduction when fried / Liquid release 0.8 Excessive price 2.8 Rapidly spoiled when fresh / Need to freeze 2.0 Others 2.3 No benefits 30.0 N/A 42.3 IV. CONCLUSIONS -Spanish families purchase food an average of 2.34 times/week, 95 of which do not exceed 100 and, with the exception of more than 400 purchases, in more than 90 of which broiler meat accounts for more than 14 of the spent budget. -Broiler meat is bought in traditional shops or supermarkets close to consumers homes, with purchases via telephone and the internet being of minor importance. -The main benefit of broiler meat is the low fat content, being healthy and suitable for diets. -72 of interviewees found no benefits in broiler meat or did not answer the question, contrasting with the fact that only 20 of interviewees stated that the low price was a benefit. What is more, most of interviewees affirmed that price was little decisive when purchasing broiler meat. -Most of homes affirm no to be influenced by the media and/or advertising campaigns, supporting the hypothesis that broiler meat is a shelter product. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The authors thank the collaboration of PROPOLLO, Instituto MARKIN, Fundación P.P. Prod. Animal, and MAPA (Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fishery and Food) for the funding. REFERENCES ALIMARKET (2007). La industria avícola. Ed. Alimarket, Madrid. ALIMARKET ( ). Yearbooks and Monographs. Ed. Alimarket, Madrid. Anonymous authors (1996). Trends in commercial poultry production. Zootecnica International 19 (12), pp Asociación Española de Codificación Comercial (2006 y 2007), Boletín Mensual de Estadística Agraria MAPA (2004, 2005, 2006 y 2007). Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fishery and Food, ( Federación Española de Hostelería y Restauración (2006, 2007). Food Industries reports ( Goodwin, H.L., McKenzie, A.M. Djunaidi H. (2003). Which broiler part is the best part?. Journal of Agricultural And Applied Economics, 35 (3), pp Koehler U. (1997). Latin-America: focus on the broiler industry. Zootecnica International. 20 (7), pp Ministerio de Industria, Turismo y Comercio (2006). Movimiento turístico en fronteras, 2006, ( MAPA Consumption Panel (2004, 2005, 2006 y 2007). Ministerio de Agricultura Pesca y Alimentación ( OCDE (2008). Reports about food demand, production and trade, ( Windhorst H.W. (2003). Will European poultry meat producers be competitive in future?. World Poultry. 19 (10), pp