Whether shopping in a conventional supermarket, supercenter or traditional carnicería, Hispanics have emerged as the highest spenders on meat products in America, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. It found that Latino households spend $955 annually on meat products vs. $826 by general market households.

What's more, while 2010 census findings show roughly 50.5 million Hispanics accounting for 16 percent of the U.S. population, certain pockets of regional growth have been so pronounced that it's caused a discernable demographic shift in some of America's most populous cities.

Cargill's Rumba meats were designed to help mainstream retailers differentiate their stores and cater to the Hispanic population.

Aggressive retailers would thus be wise to adjust their marketing budgets and new site selections accordingly based on data that maps the growth of Hispanics, as was suggested by Tony Rogers, Walmart Stores' senior vice president for brand marketing, at SymphonyIRI Group's Summit in Miami earlier this year. He affirmed the global retailer's commitment to integrating "Hispanics into every step of our marketing process and beyond," including merchandising and operations.

Rich Thoma, vice president of sales for New Kensington, Pa.-based Yerecic Label, needs little convincing of the increasingly important role Hispanic consumers play these days, particularly in the fresh meat department, which is generally considered to be the most powerful motivator for all consumer sets when selecting a particular supermarket to shop.

"Bilingual on-pack meat labels are becoming especially important, not only for retailers with a heavy Hispanic customer base, but with mainstream retailers as well, particularly the national chains, which are stepping up their efforts across all of their banners, regardless of the specific market demographics," Thoma said.

While early adopters of user-friendly bilingual on-pack meat labels were primarily concentrated in Texas, Miami and southern California, Thoma said the past year has given rise to a dramatic expansion by grocers along the eastern seaboard to follow suit, rightly so, including with private label case-ready fresh meat products as well.

Second-Generation Shifts
Aside from tailoring on-pack meat labels that offer usage ideas, cooking methods and recipes targeted to particular country-of-origin demographics (i.e., Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, etc.) that enable shoppers to easily create cherished traditional dishes, a concurrent opportunity exists for retailers to help acculturated Hispanic shoppers incorporate more mainstream ingredients and techniques into their shopping behavior as well.

"Second-generation Hispanic consumers are seeking help on how to create meat-based American dishes, and bilingual on-pack recipes are an important way to help them do just that," said Thoma, noting the invaluable resources offered to retailers along these lines by the National Pork Board (NPB) and the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA). "Both groups have excellent Hispanic meat merchandising information and resources to share with retailers, so there's no need to reinvent the wheel by going it alone." (See related Hispanic beef merchandising tips sidebar, at right).

Beefing Up Hispanic Meat Merchandising Beef is a critically important part of Hispanic culture, and stocking the right cuts can maximize a retailer's beef sales among Hispanic customers. The National Cattlemen's Beef Board/National Cattlemen's Beef Association offers the following tips to maximize this opportunity: Stock thin, flat cuts from the chuck or round that are good for dishes such as carne asada, milanesas and arracheras. Be sure your case has a selection of cuts that are ideal for creating shredded beef dishes such as ropa vieja, and always stock plenty of ground beef, used in traditional dishes such as picadillo, enchiladas and tacos. Call attention to the section of your case dedicated to Hispanic cuts with bilingual signage. Be sure the signage notes which cuts you carry and how they can be used in traditional Hispanic dishes. Making it bright and bold will help attract not only Hispanic shoppers, but other customers as well.

For its' part, the Des Moines, Iowa-based NPB recently launched a revamped, Spanish-language website, PorkElSaborDeMilPlatillos.com, targeted at creative, flavor-seeking Hispanic home cooks who already prepare, eat and love pork. Translated to "Pork. The taste of a thousand dishes," the new website aims to celebrate the meat's rich history in Hispanic culture and strong presence in Hispanic dishes, while giving Hispanic consumers easy access to traditional pork recipes often enjoyed during cultural celebrations, as well as educational information about a variety of pork cuts and nutritional profiles.

Examples of bilingual on-pack meat labels by Yerecic.

Uzma Powell, brand manager for Cargill's Rumba Beef line, agrees that one of the most significant changes in purchasing patterns of fresh meats among Hispanics has been the shift of their shopping patterns from traditional ethnic retailers to the mainstream and mass market.

"As the competitive landscape heats up among grocery retailers, mainstream grocers are more actively seeking ways to differentiate their stores and ways to generate new revenue streams," said Powell. "Retailers are paying attention to the exponential growth and influence of the Hispanic market and adjusting the products and brands they carry to cater to this population's unique needs and preferences. Hispanics today have more options for finding the products they seek among multiple retail channels."

Tradition Rules
Citing recent research conducted by Rumba's brand team that revealed eight of 10 Hispanic consumers are now shopping at mainstream retail locations, Powell said "over half of those shoppers are not buying their meat there," adding that they instead look to their local butcher to find the relevant meat cuts they use to prepare their traditional dishes.

Having launched the brand that provides retailers with a turnkey fresh meat case solution exclusively for Hispanic shoppers in 2007, Powell said the Rumba program "offers hard-to-find, high-quality, fresh beef and pork cuts that appeal to Hispanic and multicultural consumers. Hispanics seek unique cuts they use in the preparation of their traditional meals, many of which have not been commonly found in mainstream meat cases in the past," she affirmed. Therefore, it is important for mainstream retailers "to understand the significance these special meats play in the cooking habits of this segment."

Rumba Rolls Out On-Pack Holiday Promo For the second year, Cargill's fresh Rumba meat brand launched a national on-pack promotion offering chances to win cash prizes and instantly redeemable $1 off on-pack coupons that leverage the appeal of the holidays, when specialty meat consumption is at its highest, as well as consumers' need for increased savings. Rolled out in October and running through mid-January, consumers are given the chance to win a grand prize of $10,000 or one of 20 $500 cash awards, as well as coupons for free Rumba products. The bilingual initiative is executed on all packages of Rumba products and made available to all existing retail customers. "We are excited to build upon the success of last year's promotion, which verified that our efforts positively impacted Rumba sales at key retailers," said Uzma Powell, brand manager for Rumba Beef, noting a similar holiday promotion last year drove incremental sales. The Rumba line currently includes 33 fresh, never-frozen beef and pork meat cuts that are an integral part of the traditions and cultures of multicultural consumers (including Hispanic, African-American and Asian populations).

Including cuts such as beef tripe, tongue, oxtail and tripas, and pork hocks, neckbones and feet — all of which are commonly used in the preparation of Hispanics' favorite dishes — meat case offerings should reflect the preferences of consumers based on the seasonal use of specific products by Hispanics of different origin, noted Powell.

Latino households spend $955 annually on meat products vs. $826 by general market households.

For instance, "while tripe sales are consistent year-round," she explained, "sales peak during the holiday season among Mexicans as they prepare a traditional dish called menudo."

In addition, when considering fresh vs. frozen program offerings, Powell believes it's critical "to consider research that shows Hispanic consumers prefer fresh cuts, which better maintain their texture and taste when prepared and are willing to pay more for quality," such as Rumba products, which are never frozen.

When asked what specific advice she has for retailers looking to invest or enhance their Hispanic meat expertise, Powell said the single most important suggestion is "to make a commitment to becoming more relevant to Hispanic consumers, with the goal of converting them into loyal shoppers. Retailers interested in gaining incremental business from Hispanics should start by assessing individual stores to determine the most appropriate locations for appealing to the segment."

Retailers should next ensure that store-level meat managers understand the significance and usage of specialty meats, Powell said. "Stores may consider enhancing the level of service they are able to provide to this segment by providing Spanish-speaking staff that are knowledgeable about special cuts and can assist shoppers."

Once a commitment has been made and individual store strategies have been established, she continued, it's consequently important for meat managers to ensure the relevant products Hispanics seek are consistently stocked and available in order to appeal and condition Hispanic consumers to drive repeat purchases and ultimately become their preferred primary store for their grocery shopping needs. Special in-language signage and point-of-sale signage should also be considered to help make Hispanic shoppers aware that the stores carry their favorite products and help call attention to products.

Ultimately, the long-term strategy for stores looking to tap into the Hispanic opportunity, according to Powell, should be to ensure "that their commitment to these shoppers expands beyond the fresh meat case by offering relevant ingredients and products in other departments that are complementary to the meals they prepare with specialty meats."