Speaking of global inspirations, ethnic-style meat offerings are shaping up to be particularly trend-worthy. Chopped portions of cheaper meat cuts are perfect for ethnic handhelds like tacos, tostadas or empanadas, while thinly sliced beef stands out in food-of-the-moment preparations like Korean barbeque. These offerings, and others, answer the guest’s call for flavourful, fun-to-eat foods, yet allow operators to essentially do more with less.

Upscale hot dogs and burgers

Another trendy approach to beef and pork points to an upscale, higher-quality take on everyday foods like hamburgers and hot dogs. Customization is key, as new fast-casual burger chains like Smashburger and Five Guys make further inroads into the Canadian market, exposing more customers to “build-your-own” preparation formats with an eye on quality.

Pork sausages and hot dogs are also receiving gourmet treatment at independent restaurants in major cities. In Edmonton, It’ Dog is turning heads with a menu of hot dogs touting truly unique toppings and flavour combinations, such as:

• Crispy Chicken Dog — grilled sausage topped with fried chicken pieces, spicy mayo and onions
• Peach Shrimp Dog — grilled sausage topped with deep-fried shrimp, peach mayo, diced pineapple, green onions and cucumber
• Beef Rib Dog — grilled sausage topped with grilled beef short rib, lettuce, sweet mayo, green onions, deep-fried garlic and sesame seeds
• Truffle Mac & Cheese Dog — grilled sausage topped with truffle macaroni and cheese, bacon bits, Parmesan cheese and jalapeños

These examples illustrate just how readily pork can take on myriad flavour profiles, from mushroom and sesame accents, to sweet, sour and ultra-spicy tastes. Because it’s unlikely that the average consumer will replicate these preparations themselves at home, meat offerings like these may have the greatest potential to draw in consumers and justify higher price points.

Health in the spotlight

In the midst of all this activity around flavour and unique preparations for meat, it’s vital for operators and suppliers to also keep health at the forefront. But what defines health – specifically for meat – today? The answer is ever-evolving; in years past, simply describing meat as “lean” may have been enough of a health indicator, but now the health definition is far more likely to be shaped by “free-from” and “natural” qualities.

Of all health terms measured by Technomic for beef, pork, chicken and seafood, claims signifying natural production, such as “hormone-,” “steroid-” and “antibiotic-free,” are among those that about one-third of Canadian consumers are most likely to pay more for. Promoting the use of more all-natural meat items in the menu mix may help strengthen perceptions of quality and health.

Sustainability matters for meat, too, especially for beef. Earlier this year, McDonald’s announced that Canada would be its pilot market for a global sustainability program for beef, which it plans to roll out system-wide by 2016. For the world’s largest restaurant company to select Canada as the starting point for this massive undertaking speaks to the well-known importance that the Canadian consumer places on sustainability and other contemporary markers of health and well-being – not just for diners, but for the animals from which the meat is sourced.

Technomic research found that a noteworthy percentage of Canadian restaurant goers said that it’s important to them that the beef they eat is sustainably sourced (48 per cent), was free-range or cage-free (44 per cent) and that the environment was not negatively impacted by how the cattle was raised (44 per cent).

Looking ahead

Now that we’ve discussed what is happening today, let’s look at what’s in store for the meat category going forward.

Burgers beyond beef will proliferate. Beef may reign supreme for burgers, but operators are offering more specialty, non-beef burgers as well. Further, burgers are one of the fastest growing turkey-based and vegetarian-friendly entrées, and are among consumers’ most preferred chicken and vegetarian entrées. The implication for operators and suppliers is that burgers can easily appeal to a wide range of dietary needs and tastes – even if they’re not beef.

Chicken concepts will prevail. Ongoing innovation keep beef and pork in the game, but the winning protein on the plate is chicken. It’s outpacing beef and pork in consumption, and consumers are hungry for more. The Canadian market is poised for an influx in restaurant brands that specialize in chicken. Look for big, bold flavours to be in the spotlight for ethnic-style chicken chains, and for the fried chicken category to emerge as a top story in the industry in the years ahead.

Exotic proteins gain notice. Canada’s diverse immigrant populations – as well as its interest in authentic ethnic cuisines – are driving the inclusion of different meats on the menu. The burgeoning growth of Middle Eastern and Mediterranean foods is leading consumers to try less familiar meats and proteins, like lamb and goat.

As always, independent restaurants will lead the way as these trends take hold. Consider WVRST, a Toronto eatery specializing in unusual sausage preparations. In addition to pork and beef, WVRST offers sausages made with wild boar, guinea fowl, duck and even kangaroo. While kangaroo entrées will certainly not be appearing on mainstream menus any time soon, there’s still something to be said for the willingness of menu developers to experiment and appeal to diners’ curiosity with new meats.

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About the author:

Aimee Harvey is Managing Editor, Global Content, at Technomic Inc. Since 2003, Aimee has delivered insights for Technomic’s trend-tracking reports, newsletters, competitive analysis of global markets, and proprietary work covering both commercial and non-commercial foodservice segments. For more information visit www.technomic.com.