MEAT+POULTRY - September 2024 - 20

MEAT SNACK REPORT
including whole muscle and restructured
varieties. That translates to processing 20,000
lbs of raw product in 2014, to 33,000 lbs this
past year. On the snack stick side of the
business the growth has nearly topped 80%,
processing 42,000 lbs a decade ago to 76,000
lbs through 2023.
The company isn't resting on its laurels
when it comes to innovations in its meat snack
offerings. As recently as last year it rolled out
its newest flavor of snack stick, which was its
honey barbecue.
" That one just took off immediately once
we started making it and getting samples
out there for our customers. And it's almost
become one of our top sellers in a really short
period of time, " Schmidt said.
REGIONAL APPEAL
Dustin Strickland's Hattiesburg, Miss.-based
family-owned business was started nearly 50
years ago by his grandfather. It was originally
operated as a convenience store and barbecue
restaurant before evolving into Strick's
Specialty Meats, which includes a retail store
and a processing plant.
Dustin Strickland said
production of meat snacks,
including snack sticks
and jerky products, has
been an important part of
Strick's Specialty Meats'
offerings for decades.
product that won the category the year
before loses to a less traditional flavor profile
or appearance, often due to the personal
preference of the judges in a particular year.
" It's hard to guess what a judge is really
looking for, " Schmidt said, " so we just stick to
what we do and what we know. "
BOOMING BUSINESS
Looking back at the growth in Schmidt's meat
snack category, it's been easy to judge the
popularity among customers.
" There's no doubt, it's huge, " Schmidt said.
In the past decade, he said there has been
a 70% growth in retail sales of jerky products,
20 MEAT+POULTRY | 09.24 | www.meatpoultry.com
He and his siblings grew up in the business
as it grew and changed, including back when
the business focused on catering, operating
a barbecue restaurant and for several years
transitioning to a deer processing operation
only, which came at the cost of the retail
and foodservice efforts. More recently, the
company has operated as a custom processing
plant with a growing retail presence.
Strickland said in the business' retail
segment, meat snack demand has grown
exponentially, with an emphasis on one
regionally popular product that just happened
to be the ACMC's 2024 grand champion in
its category.
" Where we are in the deep South, it's wholemuscle
jerky and really that's kind of been it, "
he said.
That type of product is part of Strick's DNA,
and Strickland recalled when he used to help
make beef jerky as a kid, in the back of the
family's restaurant, and sold it to customers in
a paper bag.
" There was no expertise involved really at
all, " he said, as long as the jerky was hand cut,
dried and a little smoky, customers in the area
were more than satisfied.
Strick's Specialty Meats
http://www.meatpoultry.com
MEAT+POULTRY - September 2024

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