Despite facing some pricing pressures and other challenges, poultry continues to grow as a primary protein of choice for many consumers, whether they're eating out or at home.
The entire chicken category grew 2.5 percent in dollar sales to approximately $20.9 billion, Nielsen Perishables Group, in Chicago, reports for all U.S. outlets combined for the year ending Nov. 3, 2018. Looking at individual departments, the deli department posted the highest dollar sales growth with a 4.7 percent increase from the year before, followed by the meat department with 3.3 percent gains. Frozen chicken dipped 2.3 percent for the period, Nielsen reports.
The entire turkey category also grew, albeit at a slightly slower rate than chicken, with 2.3 percent growth in dollar sales to nearly $2.9 billion, Nielsen reports for the same time period. All departments posted some increase in turkey sales with the deli department in the lead, making double-digit gains to more than $240.5 million.