Consumers in Moscow can now buy a fully-cooked, ready-to-eat “New York Bran...

Consumers in Moscow can now buy a fully-cooked, ready-to-eat “New York Brand” sausage, thanks to a collaboration between the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) and Otradnoe, a Russian sausage maker and meat processor. Since most meat consumed by Russians is in the form of sausage, this is the most vital category in any Russian meat retail market.

USMEF and Otradnoe designed the “New York Brand” sausage to be smaller than the standard Russian sausage to lower the per-unit price, allowing more sausages to be purchased by weight and creating a distinctive American product.

USMEF tailors its strategies to fit the individual circumstances operating in each of its markets. Since Russia is primarily a processor market, USMEF designs many of its activities to meet the needs of Russian processors. Russian processors are reluctant to tell their consumers that they are using imported ingredients, so it’s USMEF’s role to persuade them that U.S. products will be welcomed by consumers if they are properly introduced and promoted.

In October and November 2000, USMEF convinced a number of Russian processors that were buying U.S. pork to advertise this fact through plastic shopping bags featuring the U.S. pork logo and the individual company logo. With this breakthrough, USMEF could move onto the next stage —in partnership with Otradnoe — of getting a processor to produce a 100 percent U.S. pork sausage and advertise its U.S. ingredients through its name, New York Brand.

In a test launch in June, 2001, Otradnoe featured the New York Brand in its own retail outlet, promoting it as 100 percent U.S. pork.. USMEF produced leaflets for consumers and paid for advertising and demonstrators. Russian consumers were attracted by the brand name, the advertising and, ultimately, the quality of the item.

Sales during the promotion totaled nearly two metric tons, far in excess of Otradnoe’s expectations. As a result, Otradnoe submitted quality and product registration to the Russian standards authorities so that the New York Brand sausage can be sold at all outlets. The product registration stipulates U.S. pork. USMEF and Otradnoe will officially launch the new product in November with in-store promotions, informational literature and carefully-planned advertising. 

Otradnoe is so delighted by the sales figures that they plan to develop a U.S. ham next year.

U.S. pork exports to Russia were up significantly during the first half of 2001, to nearly 24,000 metric tons, valued at $33.2 million. Worldwide, U.S. pork exports through July were up 29 percent in volume, at 403,206 metric tons, and up 17 percent in value at nearly $890 million. More than 10 percent of pork produced in the U.S. is now exported.

The New York Brand sausage promotion was funded by pork producers through their national pork checkoff, and their checkoff investment is further leveraged with USDA Foreign Agricultural Service foreign market development funding.

The U.S. Meat Export Federation is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn, sorghum and soybean checkoff programs.

-- USMEF --