From Survey to Solutions: ChopLocal Says Growth is Shaped by Industry Insights
The direct-to-consumer meat industry is making strides, according to findings from ChopLocal’s recent survey encompassing over 300 meat businesses across 46 states. This annual survey not only reveals evolving trends, sales volumes and marketing techniques embraced by livestock producers selling meat directly to consumers, but the company says it also shapes ChopLocal’s marketplace and educational content.
Positive changes since 2022 include an increase in average sales, an increase in producers selling USDA-inspected retail cuts, and reduced difficulty finding harvest appointments at small meat processors, the company noted in a release.
“This aligns with the conversations we’ve had anecdotally over the past year,” Katie Olthoff, ChopLocal co-founder, says in a release. “Producers and processors report that the Covid-era rush to book locker appointments 12-24 months in advance has eased.”
Survey results indicated the following key findings:
- An increase in the percentage of direct-to-consumer producers selling USDA inspected retail cuts—from 65% in 2022 to 75% in 2023.
- Producers are increasingly adopting new technologies and distribution methods.
- In 2023, 55% operated an online store, up slightly from 53% in 2022.
- A surge in producers shipping meat directly to customers, rising from 9% in 2022 to 25% in 2023.
"These shifts are correlated with higher meat sales. Producers with an online store recorded an average of $104,715 in sales—41% higher than those without an e-commerce presence. Additionally, those shipping USDA cuts saw a significant increase, averaging $147,143 in sales, more than double the volume of those without an e-commerce and shipping program," ChopLocal reports.
Despite these positive trends, the survey shows producers continue to emphasize the importance of finding new customers in order to grow their business. Key findings include:
- Nearly all use social media
- Facebook page usage staying consistent at around 88%
- Instagram usage increased from 49% in 2022 to 59% in 2023
Marketing channels shifted slightly for the most successful farms (selling over $200,000 in meat direct-to-consumer annually) with 87% of those farms using email marketing, compared to 61% overall, the release says.
"The most successful farms also report a higher level of comfort with marketing their meat. Only 18% of the farms with less than $100,000 in sales report a very high level of confidence in their marketing compared to 42% with over $100,000 in sales," ChopLocal says.
These survey insights directly influence ChopLocal's educational initiatives, the release adds.
ChopLocal was awarded a USDA Agricultural Marketing Service Farmers Market Promotion Program grant in 2022. Through it, the company initiated a series of free webinars on meat marketing, e-commerce and shipping. These resources are now available on-demand. In 2024, the organization will continue offering free webinars along with a specialized course focused on optimizing e-commerce stores for meat sellers. Learn more here.
"Our goal is to bolster sales for producers by enhancing their confidence in marketing and shipping meat," Olthoff says in the release.
Founded in 2020 by Olthoff and fellow Iowa farmer Jared Achen, ChopLocal operates an online farmers' market for meat. The platform decreases the barriers to entry for farmers interested in selling meat online, and assists with customer acquisition, the company says.
“As farmers ourselves, we know how difficult it is to juggle all aspects of the farm business,” says Achen. “We continue to look for new ways to help producers increase their local meat sales and profitability through technology and collaboration.”
ChopLocal.com is home to approximately 60 farms and butcher shops in 20 states.
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