Protein flies in a pandemic

The spread of the pandemic has shined a spotlight on chicken, in particular — not so much in volume and sales figures but in its flexibility and ease of preparation. Plant-based proteins, meanwhile — despite soaring year-over-year sales increases — did not fare well by comparison to most other proteins, whether animal- or vegetable-based.

Volume sales of chicken proteins through retail outlets in October were up 1.7% over levels from 2019, compared with an 8% increase in the volume…