On a sunny summer day, 13,000 chickens were walking along a 16-hectare plot of land in Shana Town with Texas winds. Some of them are resting in the shadow of cars, and some are drinking with cows. This seemingly unremarkable scene is actually carefully designed. The US$6.1 billion egg industry is planning to take a gamble, betting that “climate-friendly eggs” can sell well.
In the past ten years, merchants have successfully used marketing tools to allow consumers to buy organic eggs at four times the price of ordinary eggs. They claim that these eggs are good for health. In addition, free-range eggs that focus on animal welfare are also sold at seven times higher prices. It is no easy task to promote at such a high price, but savvy marketers have made these eggs successfully occupy about one-third of the market share, and plans to increase the proportion to 70% within five years. Today, industry insiders believe that through further packaging-such as the promotion of "climate-friendly eggs" from special ecological farms, can protect the earth and help sustainable development-the price of eggs can rise.
The first "climate-friendly eggs" on the shelves were priced at eight dollars a dozen, and were labeled as "organic", "animal friendly" and "regenerated agriculture". Farms adopting the regenerative agriculture model focus on improving soil health and promoting soil carbon sequestration. Therefore, the eggs from these farms can be regarded as products that are "helpful to combat climate change."
The sales of free-range eggs increased by 12%.
"So far, everything is going well," said Larry Brown, a farmer who supplies an egg company in Denver. Brown is trying to increase crops to attract bugs for laying hens. The feces excreted after the chickens are full can fertilize the fields. These changes will help improve the quality of natural feed, protect the land, and benefit the laying hens themselves. Brown said: “In this way, we can provide customers with better quality eggs.”
In less than a decade. Over time, organic eggs have entered large supermarket chains from niche products in specialty stores. Recently, probiotics and plant meat products that have been questioned by consumers have gradually opened up the market. If "climate-friendly eggs" can be promoted smoothly, it may open the door to the market for "recycled agriculture" foods. However, Julie Stanton, associate professor of agricultural economics at Penn State University's Brandwan River Campus, pointed out that because the concept of such products is more complicated, the road to promotion is bound to be difficult. Moreover, this kind of farming method has minimal improvement in food quality, even though some producers claim that their eggs are richer in protein.
Product proponents emphasized that increasing the organic matter in the soil can supplement nutrients for plants and improve carbon sequestration capacity. In addition, with healthy soil, the additional resources needed for crop growth will be reduced, and chemical fertilizers will no longer be needed. There is currently a lack of regulatory standards in this area. Therefore, there may be discrepancies between the content and the facts of the promotion. However, relevant third-party certification agencies are emerging.
The chickens in Brown's farm are roaming freely.
Another problem is that it is difficult to distinguish "climate-friendly eggs" from their appearance. Therefore, marketing is very important. The egg manufacturer "Egg Innovation" tells a story on its product packaging-the hen "on the mission of restoring the soil" strives to create a sustainable future. The company also stated on its website that its noble mission is: "Fight against climate change and improve the planet's ecosystem."
"Young people really care about the earth. Maybe they don't even realize that the food chain is changing because of them."
It is difficult to distinguish "climate-friendly eggs" from their appearance.
In addition to telling stories, the outer packaging must also be well designed. Take the new brand of eggs launched by the egg company "Pete and Gerry" as an example, and its price per dozen is one dollar higher than similar eggs. According to the company's website, in the Tiffany blue box with gold lettering, there are a dozen "spotted beauties" with "bright amber egg yolks". Inspired by the design of egg packaging boxes in the early 20th century, these packaging cartons can be opened from the middle. The company’s founder Jesse Lafame said: “We just want to do something unique to make our products stand out in the egg market.”
Industry insiders are betting on consumers who are willing to pay for high-priced egg products. It is also a supporter of sustainable development. The survey shows that the younger generation is more concerned about climate change, and the successful promotion of plant meat products can be attributed to consumers wanting to express their willingness to protect the environment. John Brunkell, president of "Egg Innovations", said: "Young people really care about the earth. Maybe they don't realize that the food chain is changing because of them."
Producers are always looking for increased production of high-quality eggs. Method to promote the development of the US egg industry. According to data from the global monitoring and data analysis company Nielsen IQ, as of April 10, the sales of organic eggs have increased by more than 7%, and the sales of free-range eggs have increased by 12%. At the same time, the sales of ordinary eggs have dropped by about 3%. %. Lafame, who has worked in this industry for 20 years, said: “When we first started to promote organic eggs and free-range eggs, we encountered a lot of doubts, but we always have expectations that consumers can recognize these products. As people are more and more concerned about the source of food, this wish has come true."
