Meat Product Manufacturing Industry Profile

Companies in this industry slaughter animals and prepare meat products. Major companies include Hormel Foods and Tyson Foods (both located in the US); as well as BRF and JBS SA (both based in Brazil); CPF (Thailand); Danish Crown (Denmark); NH Foods (Japan); and WH Group (Hong Kong), whose operations include US-based Smithfield Foods.

The world's total meat production is about 360 million tons in 2022 and is forecasted to reach 0.8% or about 365 million tons in 2023, according to the 2023 Food Outlook Biannual Report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The world's largest meat exporters include Brazil, the US, and Australia, according to ESS Feed.

The US meat product manufacturing industry includes about 3,500 establishments (single-location companies and units of multi-location companies) with combined annual revenue of about $215 billion.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand is driven by consumer income and by exports. Because meat is largely a commodity, the profitability of individual companies depends on efficient operations and an effective distribution network. Large companies have big economies of scale in production and distribution. Small companies can compete effectively in a local area or by producing unique products.

In the US, the slaughtering segment of the industry is concentrated: the 50 largest companies generate more than 75% of segment revenue.

Imports, primarily from Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, account for about 5% of the US market. Exports, which make up ...