Certified Angus Beef ® Brand Update 2021

Beef once reserved for fine restaurant dining
is giving home cooks a way to level up family
dinner. Grocers, like ShopRite in New Jersey and
neighboring states, are happy to oblige.
ShopRite introduced Certified Angus Beef ® brand Prime
in 2018. At first, shoppers favored the classic steaks:
ribeye, N.Y. strip, tenderloin and T-bone.
Fast forward two years and ShopRite added flank and
skirt steaks and briskets. They sold well, so bottom
and inside rounds, chuck rolls and burgers came next,
reaching 15 total SKUs.
Sales continue to grow.
“It really helps our business generate extra sales and
satisfy our customers,” says Mark Salerno, meat
merchandiser/operations supervisor at Wakefern Food
Corp., the cooperative buying group for ShopRite and
member grocers.
Certified Angus Beef ® brand Prime offerings expanded
from the service case to include self-service for customers
to easily pick up their preferred cuts each day. Circulars
offer a prime option alongside the same Certified Angus
Beef ® cut and a low-cost USDA Choice option, allowing
customers to choose a price point.
“They are trading up to Certified Angus Beef ® brand
Prime because the quality is so good and the marbling
is so good,” Salerno says. “We know they’re getting a
consistent eating experience and they’ll come back to
our stores.”
Shoppers appreciate ShopRite’s service, too. They want
a butcher behind the counter to cut their beef fresh each
day and share cooking tips: a relationship built on trust.
Jason DeLillo, ShopRite’s senior category manager and
fresh beef buyer, says there’s something intimate about
Certified Angus Beef ® brand Prime.
“It’s a level of quality that follows from the grower to
the packer to the retailer and the consumer sees that,”
he says. “We need to find a way to continue growing
that brand and have more variety available to us.”
In five years, increased availability allowed for a
135% gain in the brand’s prime sales to 37.3 million
pounds this year. Retail sales, including chuck and
round cuts, accounted for much of the gain. Certified
Angus Beef ® brand Prime also continues to help chefs
elevate dining experiences.
Demand from home cooks and chefs signals the need
for more prime-grade cattle and family ranchers are
listening. In 2015, USDA Prime beef represented 2% of
all federally graded beef. Today, it’s 9% and growing.
Home cooks and chefs are ready to serve it for dinner.
“By giving shoppers traditional and Certified Angus Beef ®
brand Prime, we know they’re going to get a consistent eating
experience and they’ll come back to our stores.”
— Mark Salerno, Wakefern Food Corp.
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