Meat Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the meat market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period, and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global meat market reached a value of nearly $1.06 trillion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.97% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $1.06 trillion in 2023 to $1.45 trillion in 2028 at a rate of 6.51%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.47% from 2028 and reach $1.9 trillion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the growing meat consumption, increase in disposable income, increased awareness about the health benefits, government support for meat, increasing demand for protein rich diet and rising demand of meat-based convenience foods. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period was increased acceptance of vegan and vegetarian diets.

Going forward, rising global population, increasing urbanization and strong economic growth will drive the growth. Factor that could hinder the growth of the meat market in the future include high meat price.

The meat market is segmented by type into raw and processed meat. The raw market was the largest segment of the meat market segmented by type, accounting for 62.65% or $666.42 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the processed segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the meat market segmented by type, at a CAGR of 7.42% during 2023-2028.

The meat market is segmented by product into chicken, beef, pork and other products. The chicken market was the largest segment of the meat market segmented by product, accounting for 39.51% or $420.31 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the other products segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the meat market segmented by product, at a CAGR of 9.92% during 2023-2028.

The meat market is segmented by distribution channel into supermarkets and hypermarkets, producers, specialty stores, online stores and other distribution channels. The supermarkets and hypermarkets market was the largest segment of the meat market segmented by distribution channel, accounting for 39.17% or $416.67 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the producers segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the meat market segmented by distribution channel, at a CAGR of 7.80% during 2023-2028.

Asia Pacific was the largest region in the meat market, accounting for 47.38% or $504.03 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by North America, Western Europe and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the meat market will be South America and Middle East where growth will be at CAGRs of 15.44% and 12.96% respectively. These will be followed by Africa and North America where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 9.03% and 5.19% respectively.

The global meat market is fairly fragmented, with large number of players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 16.76% of the total market in 2023. JBS SA. was the largest competitor with a 6.17% share of the market, followed by Tyson Foods Inc. with 4.02%, WH Group Limited with 2.22%, Sysco Corporation with 1.34%, Perdue Farms Incorporated with 0.75%, Cargill Incorporated with 0.75%, NH Foods Ltd. with 0.63%, Vion Food Group with 0.34%, Hormel Foods Corporation with 0.28% and Marfrig Global Foods SA with 0.26%.

The top opportunities in the meat market segmented by type will arise in the raw segment, which will gain $223.05 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the meat market segmented by product will arise in the chicken segment, which will gain $155.1 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the meat market segmented by distribution channel will arise in the supermarkets and hypermarkets segment, which will gain $154.56 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The meat market size will gain the most in Brazil at $39.78 billion.

Market-trend-based strategies for meat market include focus on developing innovative products and technologies, such as muscle cultivation, to meet rising consumer demand for sustainable and ethical protein sources, focus on prioritizing strategic partnerships to enhance supply chain resilience, expand market reach and leverage technological innovations for sustainable growth, focus on investing in innovative solutions like cell-based meat to meet growing demand for sustainable and ethical alternatives, focus on innovation through government investments and partnerships to enhance production efficiency, sustainability and meet evolving consumer demands and focus on developing innovative services, such as cultivated meat products, to meet growing consumer demand for sustainable and ethical alternatives to traditional meat production.

Player-adopted strategies in the meat market include focus on investment in new facility to expand portfolio for both new and existing customers and for future growth, focus on strengthening its business operations through strategic investments, focus on strategic partnerships to expand and distribute product in a competitive market and focus on strategic partnerships to expand and distribute its product in a competitive market.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the meat companies to focus on sustainable protein innovation, focus on investment in cell-based meat production, focus on cultivated meat innovation, focus on processed meat segment, focus on chicken market growth, expand in emerging markets, focus on strategic partnerships for growth, focus on government investments and partnerships, focus on strategic pricing for market competitiveness, focus on targeted marketing campaigns, focus on seasonal and event-based promotions and focus on online stores segment growth.