How will Generation Z expectations transform the poultry meat market?

Chicken marketers need to start planning how to future-proof communications with the unique consumer expectations and needs of Generation Z.

“Our future consumer is really forging a new food future. What I mean by that is that they’re doing things differently from their parents in terms of food,” Michele Murray, executive vice president, Food Agriculture and Ingredient Practice, Ketchum, said. For example, 68% of Generation Z say they are cooking differently than their parents, with only 20% indicating that the way they ate as kids impacts the way they eat now. “We’re seeing a major shift in how this particular target audience, Generation Z is choosing their food, making purchasing decisions and their general attitude about food,” she added.

One of the biggest differentiators between Generation Z, born between 1997 and 2012, and previous generations is that there is a large part of this demographic that considers themselves food evangelists. This is likely due to their lifelong exposure to social media and the internet. “When we first identified this as a consumer segment back more than 10 years ago, 22% of the overall population fit into that food evangelist category,” Murray explained. “But for Generation Z, we found that over half describe themselves as food evangelists.” In other words, this demographic is highly interested in understanding more about food and sharing that food story with the people around them.

Generation Z is also highly value-driven when it comes to the food they purchase in terms of the environment. They also believe their food choices say something about them – from sustainability to body issues and even when it comes to certain political issues. They feel the weight of the world to make certain decisions about food and are judged by society. These are certainly aspects that cannot be ignored in the market communication of chicken meat towards a consumer segment that will soon represent a significant purchasing power.