HI. I'm Will Sawyer, lead economist with
CoBank's Knowledge Exchange Division.
Very soon, Walmart shoppers across the
Southeast will find a product in their
nearest supercenter they haven't seen
before:
Walmart-produced steak. Now Walmart has
sold steak for decades. In fact, Walmart
is the largest grocery retailer of beef
in the country. What is new is it in the
next few months, some of that beef will
come from Walmart's new case-ready beef
plant and through its own Angus beef
supply chain.
Walmart's new beef plant will distribute
steaks and roasts to 500 of its stores
in Georgia, Florida, and Alabama. With this
move
Walmart is joining another major food
retailer, Costco, which also moved up the
animal protein supply chain when it
opened its own chicken plant last year.
But for Walmart, this is not a new
strategy. In 2018, it opened its first
milk facility to take costs out of its
supply chain. Now Walmart is doing the
same in beef but is taking to heart the
old mantra of 'try it before you buy it.'
We think Walmart's beef initiative will
account for less than 5% of its beef
business, but by connecting the links of
the fragmented U.S. beef supply chain,
Walmart and its customers will be
gaining better transparency than they've
ever had before. If this strategy is
successful from the standpoint of supply
chain and consumer reaction, we could
very well see Walmart move up the beef
supply chain in the future. To learn more
read my report on CoBank.com.
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