Gitnux/Report 2026

Bacon Industry Statistics

264Statistics
106Sources
12Sections
1Visuals
47mRead
Samuel NorbergWritten by Samuel Norberg·Fact-checked by Maya Johansson
Published
How this report is researched
01Editorial Scope

Gitnux editors write the brief first: the topic, the inclusion rules, and the frame for what belongs.

02Source Research

Agents search the published record and log every extracted figure back to the passage it came from.

Read our full methodology →

Search agents attach provenance to every extracted figure.

Next review: within 31 days

01 Industry overview

The bacon industry at a glance

The U.S. bacon market generated about $7.1 billion in retail sales in 2025, with value up 2.8% while pounds sold declined 0.3%, indicating resilient demand but continued volume pressure.

$7.1B[91]
Retail bacon sales, 2025
2.8%[91]
Sales growth, 2025
27.6B lb[92]
U.S. pork production, 2025
65%[92]
Share held by 15 largest hog plants, 2025
Market size
U.S. retail bacon sales reached $7.1 billion in 2025, according to Circana data reported by Supermarket Perimeter. A separate market-research estimate places the broader U.S. bacon market at $8.42 billion in 2025, reflecting differences in scope between retail sales and total market revenue.[91][93]
Forecast & CAGR
Emergen Research forecasts the U.S. bacon market to rise from $8.86 billion in 2026 to $13.24 billion in 2035, representing a 4.6% CAGR from 2026 to 2035. The forecast covers product type, source, distribution channel and end use.[93]
Market share & regions
U.S. bacon-specific regional shares were not identified in a reliable public source. As a supply-chain proxy, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas and Texas together accounted for 49% of U.S. commercial red-meat production in 2025, while Iowa held the largest hog inventory at 25.3 million head as of December 1, 2025.[92][94]
Segmentation
Retail bacon is segmented by processed format and use, including conventional sliced bacon, thick-cut and specialty products, fully cooked or ready-to-eat bacon, and foodservice formats. Circana’s 2025 retail category reporting separates bacon from adjacent processed-meat segments such as lunchmeat, dinner sausage, frankfurters, breakfast sausage and smoked ham; bacon generated $7.1 billion in the latest 52-week period reported in October 2025.[20][93]
Key players & concentration
Major U.S. branded and private-label suppliers include Smithfield Foods, Tyson Foods, Hormel Foods and JBS, alongside retailer-owned brands. Upstream processing is concentrated: the 15 largest U.S. hog-slaughter plants accounted for 65% of hog slaughter in 2025, although this measure covers pork processing broadly rather than bacon alone.[84][92]
Pricing
The U.S. average retail price for sliced bacon was $6.756 per pound in September 2026, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics series published by FRED. Circana-based reporting put the 2025 average at $6.31 per pound, showing that bacon remains a relatively high-value processed-meat item despite promotional variation.[95][22]
Trends, drivers & challenges
Bacon sales remained resilient in 2025, but pounds sold declined 0.3% even as dollar sales increased 2.8%, indicating price and mix effects. Key drivers include bacon’s use across breakfast, sandwiches and other meal occasions, while challenges include elevated retail prices, volume sensitivity and broader weakness in processed-meat consumption.[91][21]
Consumer behavior & competition
Bacon led U.S. processed-meat retail sales at $7.1 billion in 2025, ahead of packaged lunchmeat at $6.9 billion, dinner sausage at $5.9 billion and breakfast sausage at $2.5 billion. Research reported by the National Provisioner indicates consumers continue to view bacon as an affordable indulgence, helping it outperform some other processed-meat categories despite small declines in dollars and pounds in the latest June 2025–June 2026 period.[20][21]
Regulation
In the United States, bacon is regulated as a meat product under USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service oversight. FSIS explains that curing commonly uses salt, nitrate or nitrite and related ingredients, while meat-product labels must list ingredients in descending order by weight and identify required processing information where applicable.
Latest news
The latest industry reporting available as of November 10, 2026, found that U.S. retail bacon sales totaled $7 billion from June 2025 through June 2026, with both dollar sales and pounds sold posting small declines. Circana data cited in the same report put average retail bacon prices at $6.21 per pound in June 2026, down 1% year over year.[21]
report visual · Comparison

Revenue of the largest bacon companies

JBS leads with $86.2B in annual revenue (group level, converted to USD).

JBS$86.2B
Tyson Foods$54.4B
Hormel Foods$12.1B
Danish Crown$9.5B
Vion Food Group$5.9B
Cranswick$3.8B
source-verifiedmediaroom.jbs.com.br · ir.tyson.com · hormelfoods.com · danishcrown.com · vionfoodgroup.com · cranswick.plc.uk2026

02 Ranking

Top 10 Companies in the Bacon Industry

The leading companies in the bacon industry, ranked on market impact, performance, momentum, innovation and brand popularity.

Updated November 10, 2026 · Next review December 10, 2026

Verdict

JBS and Cranswick are tied at the top of Gitnux's 2026 bacon ranking with an Overall score of 9.4 each.

Ranked by Overall score · How we score ↓

Editor's top 3 picks

Where to start, by need.

  1. #1 Overall · Leader in bacon capacity buildouts

    JBS

    BR

    Ranked #1 · 9.4 · Bacon capacity buildouts

    Why we picked it: It combines global pork processing with U.S. pre-cooked bacon expansion and an automation-technician scope.

    See in ranking ↓Visit jbs.com.br ↗

  2. Leader in bacon automation

    Cranswick

    GB

    Ranked #2 · 9.4 · Bacon automation

    Why we picked it: It runs a dedicated gourmet bacon and gammon facility, supported by bacon processing automation.

    See in ranking ↓Visit cranswick.plc.uk ↗

  3. Leader in prepared pork foods

    Maple Leaf Foods

    CA

    Ranked #3 · 9.1 · Prepared pork foods

    Why we picked it: Its Winnipeg facility focuses on raw and pre-cooked bacon inputs and production know-how.

    See in ranking ↓Visit mapleleaffoods.com ↗

Pick 1 is the #1 company overall. Picks 2 and 3 are the highest-ranked companies in the top 5 that add a new segment.

Full ranking

Sort by
Top 10 companies in the bacon industry, 2026 – Gitnux ranking
#CompanyOverall ↓Company snapshot
1

JBS

Bacon capacity buildouts · BR

9.4
2

Cranswick

Bacon automation · GB

9.4
3

Maple Leaf Foods

Prepared pork foods · CA

9.1
4

Hormel Foods

Bacon processing · US

8.7
5

Tyson Foods

Bacon capacity buildouts · US

8.6
6

Seaboard

Integrated pork production and processing, United States · US

8.4
7

Vion Food Group

Pork processing and bacon, Netherlands and Europe · NL

8.1
8

Danish Crown

Pork processing and bacon, Europe · DK

7.9
9

Atria

Processed pork and bacon, Finland and Northern Europe · FI

7.7
10

The Kraft Heinz Company

Oscar Mayer bacon and packaged meats, United States · US

7.6

How we score

  • Impact (30%): scale and weight in the market (revenue, market share, employees, market position).
  • Performance (20%): recent revenue growth and operating margin; an analyst assessment where a company does not publish them.
  • Momentum (20%): growth trajectory and future potential.
  • Innovation (15%): R&D intensity and how technologically advanced the company is.

Popularity (brand search demand, 15%) counts toward Overall but is not published as a column. Overall leaves out what is not known.

Scale Scores are shown on a 7–10 scale with one decimal; bars start at 7.0.

Cadence Recalculated when new figures are published; next review December 10, 2026.

Independence. Rankings are editorially independent. Scores, ranks, picks and the verdict follow the method above; no company can pay to change them.

Cite this ranking

APA

Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 11). Top 10 companies in the bacon industry. In Bacon Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/bacon-industry-statistics/#top-companies

04 Statistics

Technology & Innovation

Automation and robotics appear as direct labor and throughput levers, including Tyson’s 2 million pounds per week expected output and Danish Crown’s robot replacement of manual salting.

Automation in the bacon industry

  • 2 people are required to operate BAK Food Equipment’s fully automated spiral cooking, smoking and freezing system for bacon, compared with dozens for traditional manual operations.[1]
  • 2 robots replaced manual bacon-salting work at Danish Crown’s Blans facility, which handled 120–130 tons of bacon per day.[2]
  • 2 million pounds of bacon per week is the expected output of Tyson Foods’ Bowling Green, Kentucky, plant.[3]
  • 10 employees were moved to other departments after robots took over heavy lifting in Danish Crown’s bacon-curing operation at Blans, with no job losses reported.[2]
  • 1 bacon automation-technician role at JBS’s Ottumwa facility covers conveyors, robotics, vision systems, high-speed slicing and packaging equipment.[4]
  • $355 million was invested in Tyson Foods’ Bowling Green, Kentucky, bacon plant, which uses robotics and automated technologies; the facility opened in January 2024.[3]

Digital Transformation in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 28% of food, beverage, and ingredient professionals reported positive effects from digital transformation technologies on food-safety preventive controls in 2024.[5]
  • 34% of food, beverage, and ingredient professionals said manufacturing process or assembly had been positively affected by digital transformation technologies in 2024.[5]
  • 40% of 423 food and beverage professionals worldwide identified disconnected systems and data as their organization’s biggest operational barrier in 2026.[6]
  • 82% of food and beverage leaders said technology adoption was a strategic priority, while 6% reported fully integrated digital systems, in a 2025 survey.[6]

Technology Adoption in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 50% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in artificial intelligence as part of their 2025 digital-transformation strategies.[5]
  • 22% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in machine-learning software in 2025.[5]
  • 31% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in robotics or robotic process automation in 2025.[5]
  • 23% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in mobile-app technologies in 2025.[5]

Cloud Computing in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 18% of food manufacturers were already using cloud-based manufacturing-execution systems, while 51% planned implementation, according to a 2025 industry survey.[7]
  • 39.5% of EU enterprises in accommodation and food-service activities used paid cloud-computing services in 2025.[8]
  • 52% of food processors and manufacturers were considering cloud technology, while 45% reported no cloud use, in a 2023 industry survey.[9]
  • 30% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in cloud computing or enterprise resource-planning software and systems in 2025.[5]

Big Data in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 35% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in big data and real-time analytics in 2025.[5]
  • 47% of food, beverage, and ingredient professionals identified gathering, analyzing, and leveraging data for data-driven decisions as a digital-transformation investment driver in 2024.[5]
  • 13% of food manufacturers were already using advanced-analytics or big-data platforms, while 44% planned implementation, in a 2025 industry survey.[7]
  • 24% of food-manufacturing respondents were very familiar with advanced analytics, while 34% were moderately familiar, in CRB’s 2025 survey.[10]

IoT in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 31% of food-manufacturing respondents were very familiar with the Internet of Things, while 35% were moderately familiar, in CRB’s 2025 survey.[10]
  • 33% of UK manufacturing companies had adopted IoT technologies in a 2024 national survey, with manufacturing among the sectors reporting comparatively high adoption.[11]
  • 16% of food, beverage, and ingredient companies anticipated investing in Internet-of-Things devices or sensors in 2025.[5]
  • 26% of food manufacturers were already using IoT sensors or equipment monitoring, while 37% planned implementation, in a 2025 industry survey.[7]

Innovation in the bacon industry

  • 60% was Hormel Foodservice BACON 1’s two-year sales compound annual growth rate, according to the company’s annual report.[12]
  • 5 years was the development period for Hormel Foodservice’s BACON 1 perfectly cooked bacon product.[13]
  • 1 new bacon category entrant, Prairie Fresh, entered the bacon market in 2025, according to reporting on category innovation.[14]
  • $1 billion-plus in annual retail and foodservice sales is represented by bacon at Tyson Foods.[3]

05 Statistics

Data & Analytics

Data governance and quality show up as recurring operational constraints, alongside price benchmarks like $6.21 per pound in June 2026 and a $7.0 billion Circana retail sales figure.

Data Quality in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 6.4 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data accuracy as important in 2018.[15]
  • 7.0 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data completeness as important in 2018.[15]
  • 6.6 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data consistency as important in 2018.[15]
  • 22% of consumer-products companies reported that businesses lacked trust in data quality and validity in 2024.[16]
  • 6.4 out of 10: Food, beverage and agriculture respondents rated data timeliness as important in 2018.[15]
  • 77% of retail and consumer-products companies identified improving data quality as a priority in 2023.[17]

Data Governance in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 43% of consumer-products companies reported struggling to establish the right level of data governance in 2024.[16]
  • 22% of consumer-products companies planned to increase investment in data infrastructure and governance over the following 12 months in 2024.[16]
  • 61% of supply-management organizations had a dedicated data-governance function in 2024.[18]
  • 90% of supply-management organizations agreed or strongly agreed that data governance was necessary in 2024.[18]
  • 81% of supply-management organizations found their data-governance program useful in 2024.[18]
  • 47% of supply-management data-governance functions were housed in a center of excellence in 2024.[18]

KPIs in the bacon industry

  • $7.60 per pound was the reported U.S. bacon price peak in October 2022.[19]
  • $700 million in U.S. bacon sales was recorded in October 2025, up 2.1% year over year, while pound sales fell 3.8%.[20]
  • $2.1 billion was the reported U.S. bacon dollar-sales total when sales were growing 10.1% year over year in the cited retail period.[21]
  • $7.0 billion in U.S. bacon sales was reported for the June 2025–June 2026 period in Circana retail-sales analysis.[21]
  • $7.1 billion in U.S. bacon sales was recorded for the latest 52 weeks in Circana’s October 2025 market update, with pound sales unchanged year over year.[20]
  • 900 million pounds was the reported U.S. volume sales of refrigerated and non-branded random-weight bacon for the 52 weeks ending July 15, 2018.[21]

06 Statistics

Strategy & Growth

Capacity and product expansion drive planning, including Daily’s planned smoked-bacon output at 1.25 million pounds per week and Daily’s 2026 Missouri expansion additions.

Growth in the bacon industry

  • 31% of Monogram Foods’ revenue came from its Iowa bacon plants, supporting a focused growth strategy around bacon manufacturing.[22]
  • 63% revenue growth was reported by specialty bacon brand The Baconer in 2021, following revenue that had doubled annually from 2018 through 2020.[23]
  • 2.8% was the year-over-year increase in U.S. bacon-category dollar sales for the 52 weeks ending December 2025, when annual sales exceeded $7.1 billion.[22]
  • 60 million pounds of annual production capacity were added by Daily’s Premium Meats through its 2026 Missouri expansion.[24]
  • $100 million was invested in Daily’s Premium Meats’ St. Joseph bacon-plant expansion to support retail and foodservice growth.[25]

Differentiation in the bacon industry

  • 1 limited-edition Garlic Rosemary bacon flavor was introduced by HORMEL BLACK LABEL in 2024 to position bacon for non-breakfast uses.[12]
  • 32 bacon varieties were typically carried by a U.S. grocery store in 2025, according to 210 Analytics’ category analysis.[22]
  • 48 stock-keeping units were supported by Monogram Quality Meats’ Iowa bacon facility, enabling differentiation through product mix.[22]
  • 5 cooking preferences were reported by Smithfield Culinary diners beyond the no-preference response: crispy, medium, well-done, lightly cooked and deep-fried.[26]
  • 1 first-of-its-kind co-branded bacon product paired HORMEL BLACK LABEL Bacon with Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal in 2024.[12]

Mergers and acquisitions in the bacon industry

  • $4.8 million in sales was generated by Boulder Sausage in the year before MBH Corporation agreed to acquire the U.S. sausage and bacon manufacturer.[27]
  • $94 million was the announced purchase price for JBS subsidiary Swift Prepared Foods’ acquisition of Sunnyvalley Smoked Meats, a bacon, ham and turkey producer, in 2021.[23]
  • December 1, 2021 was the completion date for JBS USA’s acquisition of Sunnyvalley, expanding its value-added and branded bacon presence.[28]
  • $276.9 million was the reported U.S.-dollar equivalent preliminary purchase price for JBS’s Huon acquisition, which closed on November 17, 2021 and strengthened its Australian pork platform.[23]
  • $2.1 million to $2.6 million was the stated consideration range for MBH Corporation’s acquisition of Boulder Sausage in 2021.[27]

Strategic partnerships in the bacon industry

  • 1 co-branded campaign paired Oscar Mayer with Mint Mobile in 2023 to distribute bacon with purchases through partner businesses in U.S. cities.[29]
  • 1 restaurant group, Fiorella, became Mission Barns’ first restaurant launch partner for cultivated bacon and meatballs in 2025.[30]
  • 2 brands, HORMEL BLACK LABEL Bacon and General Mills’ Cinnamon Toast Crunch, formed the first co-branded bacon partnership announced in 2024.[31]
  • More than 1 million qualified consumers were identified as the potential audience reached through The Baconer’s 2022 partnership with Goldbelly to expand e-commerce.[23]
  • 1 national supermarket chain was selected as Mission Barns’ planned retail partner for its cultivated bacon launch in the United States.[30]

07 Statistics

People & Workforce

Workforce shifts track automation adoption, with 10 employees redeployed after robots replaced manual heavy lifting in Danish Crown’s bacon-curing operation.

Hiring in the bacon industry

  • 1 human-resources-manager vacancy was listed by JBS USA in its Iowa operations job listings alongside bacon and automation roles.[4]
  • 1 bacon automation-technician vacancy was listed by JBS Foods at its Ottumwa, Iowa, bacon facility in October 2026.[4]
  • 1 bacon quality-assurance technician vacancy appeared alongside the bacon automation-technician role in JBS’s Ottumwa, Iowa, job listings.[4]
  • 66,000-plus employees make up JBS USA’s workforce, which includes employees supporting its bacon operations.[4]
  • 450 new jobs were expected at Tyson Foods’ Bowling Green, Kentucky, bacon plant when it opened in January 2024.[3]

Remote Work in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • In U.S. accommodation and food services, 1.7% of employees were able to work fully remotely in 2024.[32]
  • U.S. accommodation and food-services firms averaged 0.1 work-from-home days per week from November 2024 through January 2025.[33]
  • Across U.S. food and beverage businesses, 26% let employees choose to work in-person or remotely in 2025, while 73% require in-person work.[34]
  • Among food-sector career starters globally, 36% were fully site-based during their first two years of work, according to a 2024 survey.[35]

Hybrid Work in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • In U.S. restaurant and bar businesses, 12% offered employees a choice between in-person and remote work in 2025.[34]
  • Among food-sector career starters globally, 27% worked in a hybrid arrangement during their first two years, according to a 2024 survey.[35]
  • In 2025, 80% of hospitality and food-services employers said they were still struggling to get the balance right with hybrid working.[36]
  • Across U.S. food and beverage businesses, 26% offered employees the option to work in-person or remotely in 2025.[34]

Upskilling in the bacon industry

  • 1 bacon automation-technician position at JBS requires skills in PLC/PAC systems, variable-frequency drives, robotics, vision systems and industrial computers.[4]
  • 10 Danish Crown employees were redeployed to other departments after robots replaced manual heavy lifting in the company’s bacon-curing operation.[2]

Employee Engagement in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among U.S. and Canadian frontline employees surveyed in 2024, 52% worked in foodservice, in a sample of 46,250 employees used to assess workplace engagement.[37]
  • Food-and-beverage organizations scored 7.91 out of 10 for employee engagement in the latest 2026 benchmark dataset.[38]
  • Globally, 21% of employees were engaged in 2025, providing an economy-wide benchmark relevant where food-and-beverage-specific engagement data are limited.[39]
  • Food-service employees recorded 72.6% engagement in 2026, up 9.1 percentage points from the prior measurement.[40]

Change Management in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among CPG executives, 5% said their companies decreased resources devoted to change-management initiatives during the prior 12 months.[41]
  • In the 2024–2025 HR Systems Survey, 39% of organizations applied change management sporadically and 9% reported using no change management.[42]
  • Among foodservice organizations surveyed in 2024, 44% cited a lack of internal expertise to execute analyses as a menu-optimization barrier.[43]
  • In a 2024 survey of foodservice organizations, 49% ranked resistance to change as a top barrier to evolving menu strategy.[43]
  • In the 2024–2025 HR Systems Survey, 28% of organizations used adaptive or agile change management, while 24% used a project-based approach.[42]

08 Statistics

Customer & Sales

Consumer usage remains consistent while preparation preferences vary, with 58% saying breakfast is not complete without bacon and 10% preferring well-done or charred.

Customer experience in the bacon industry

  • 10% of U.S. diners preferred well-done or charred bacon in Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 survey.[26]
  • 58% of U.S. diners said breakfast is not complete without bacon in Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 survey.[26]
  • 66% of millennial U.S. diners said they would try a unique bacon-infused menu item in Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 survey.[26]
  • 43% of male U.S. diners said the quickest way to their heart is with bacon in Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 survey.[26]
  • Nearly 7 in 10 U.S. diners considered bacon a side that pairs well with other food in Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 survey.[26]

Customer acquisition in the bacon industry

  • 5.96% was the overall engagement rate for McDonald’s U.S. bacon-menu influencer campaign.[44]
  • 7% was the increase in average bacon sales during Oscar Mayer’s U.S. #SaveBaconHairs campaign.[45]
  • 80,000 engagements were generated by McDonald’s U.S. bacon-menu influencer tastings in Portland, Washington, D.C., and Seattle.[44]
  • 4.82% was the click-through rate for Farmland Foods’ U.S. paid-social campaign promoting a bacon recipe.[46]
  • 7,500 impressions were generated by the Instagram takeover supporting McDonald’s U.S. Bacon Hour promotion.[44]

Lead generation in the bacon industry

  • 24,260 clicks were recorded from a U.S. bacon-brand email campaign promoting a grocery-store offer.[47]
  • 2.43% was the click-through rate for a U.S. bacon-brand email campaign promoting a grocery-store offer.[47]
  • 23.17% was the open rate for a U.S. bacon-brand email campaign promoting a grocery-store buy-one-get-one offer.[47]
  • 1,000,000 emails were delivered in a U.S. grocery campaign promoting a bacon brand’s buy-one-get-one offer.[47]
  • 10.47% was the clicks-to-opens ratio for a U.S. bacon-brand email campaign promoting a grocery-store offer.[47]

09 Statistics

Marketing & Brand

Brand campaigns generate measurable reach at scale, including 250 million impressions from Church’s Chicken’s Bringing Back Bacon, TX and 4.2 million people reached for Oscar Mayer’s #SaveBaconHairs.

Marketing in the bacon industry

  • 250 million impressions were generated by Church’s Chicken’s Bringing Back Bacon, TX campaign in the United States.[48]
  • 3% was the year-over-year pork-sales increase targeted by Iowa Pork Producers Association’s 2024 Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign.[49]
  • 600-plus local, regional, and national media hits resulted from New Hampshire Lottery’s I Heart Bacon campaign.[50]
  • 89,387 post impressions were generated by Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign.[49]
  • 4,106% was the increase in average impressions per post across social platforms for Iowa Pork Producers Association’s campaign.[49]

Digital marketing in the bacon industry

  • 2.6 million views were generated by the initial X post for Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign.[51]
  • 4.2 million people were reached overall by Oscar Mayer’s U.S. #SaveBaconHairs campaign.[45]
  • 3.1 million gamers were reached by Oscar Mayer’s U.S. #SaveBaconHairs digital campaign.[45]
  • 5,697,801 organic TikTok impressions were generated by La Vie’s UK plant-based bacon Veganuary campaign.[52]
  • 9.83% was the engagement rate for La Vie’s UK plant-based bacon TikTok influencer campaign.[52]

Branding in the bacon industry

  • 1.4 billion unique online visitors were reported for New Hampshire Lottery’s I Heart Bacon campaign.[50]
  • 53% of vegans in Oscar Mayer’s research reportedly left their diets in pursuit of bacon.[53]
  • 31,000-plus social engagements were generated by Farmer John’s Bacon Party campaign in Portland, Oregon.[54]
  • 3,125 miles was the distance covered during Oscar Mayer’s Great American Bacon Barter campaign.[54]
  • 2x was the increase in online conversations about Oscar Mayer during the Great American Bacon Barter campaign.[54]

Social media in the bacon industry

  • 1.4 million people were reached by Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Facebook activity after the 2023 Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign, a 65% increase.[51]
  • 40,000 supportive comments were generated by Oscar Mayer’s U.S. #SaveBaconHairs campaign.[45]
  • 35,000 Facebook engagements were generated by the second video in Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign.[51]
  • 195,000 Facebook users were reached by the second video in Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign.[51]
  • 2,079 social shares were recorded for Iowa Pork Producers Association’s Purchase Moore Hamann Bacon campaign across platforms.[49]

Influencer Marketing in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • 69.3% of TikTok videos featuring branded food or beverage products had no brand-relationship disclosure, based on an analysis of 648 videos published in 2025.[55]
  • 49% of U.S. millennial food and beverage shoppers said they purchased from an influencer-founded or influencer-led brand in the previous year, according to a 2025 survey.[56]
  • 63% of U.S. food and beverage shoppers said they purchased a prepackaged product based on an online influencer’s recommendation in the previous year, according to a June 2025 survey.[56]
  • 33% of U.S. food and beverage shoppers said they purchased a product from an influencer-founded or influencer-led brand such as Prime or Feastables in the previous year, in 2025.[56]
  • 47.6% of TikTok videos featuring food products from top influencers included a branded product, based on an analysis of 1,360 videos published in 2025.[55]

10 Statistics

Operations & Execution

Execution risk includes import-inspection gaps and recall volumes, including 12,036 pounds of imported smoked bacon recalled and 3 states impacted in the 2026 Maple Leaf Foods incident.

Process optimization in the bacon industry

  • 150 positions were expected once Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri bacon expansion reached full operation.[22]
  • $100 million was invested in Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri bacon-plant expansion, which added smokehouses, slicing capacity and integrated bacon-bit production.[22]
  • 1.25 million pounds per week was the planned smoked-bacon output of Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri plant after its processing expansion.[57]
  • 130 million pounds of ready-to-eat sausage capacity was planned for JBS USA’s Ankeny, Iowa, facility, alongside its largest U.S. precooked-bacon and sausage plant investment.[28]
  • 111,000 square feet was the size of Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri bacon-processing expansion project.[22]

Operational efficiency in the bacon industry

  • 1.25 million pounds per week was the target output for Daily’s Premium Meats’ smoked-bacon plant.[57]
  • 400,000 square feet was the footprint of Tyson Foods’ automated Bowling Green, Kentucky, bacon facility designed to maximize production efficiency and worker safety.[3]
  • 100 jobs were expected initially from Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri bacon-plant expansion.[22]
  • $100 million was the capital cost of Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri bacon-processing expansion completed in 2026.[22]

Quality management in the bacon industry

  • 8 Oscar Mayer turkey-bacon product configurations were included in the 2025 national recall linked to possible Listeria contamination.[58]
  • 5 production dates in June 2026 were associated with Maple Leaf Foods smoked bacon recalled for bypassing U.S. import reinspection.[58]
  • 1 establishment number, EST. 1, identified the Canadian facility linked to the 2026 Maple Leaf Foods bacon recall.[58]
  • 12,036 pounds of imported smoked bacon were recalled after entering the United States without required import reinspection.[58]
  • 3 U.S. states—Idaho, Oregon and Washington—received Maple Leaf Foods bacon covered by the 2026 import-inspection recall.[58]

Supply chain in the bacon industry

  • 3 states received Maple Leaf Foods smoked bacon recalled in 2026 because it entered the United States without import reinspection.[58]
  • 2 bacon-processing additions—smokehouses and slicing capacity—were included in Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri expansion.[22]
  • 80 bacon and other meat products were included in the initial Boar’s Head listeria recall, according to reporting on the 2024 outbreak.[58]
  • 50% of Daily’s Premium Meats was owned by Triumph Foods after its 2014 purchase from Seaboard Foods, supporting an integrated pork-and-bacon supply system.[57]
  • 2 retail and foodservice bacon brands—Wright Brand and Jimmy Dean—were planned for Tyson Foods’ Bowling Green, Kentucky, facility.[3]

Outsourcing / Offshoring in the food and beverage sector (sector benchmark)

  • Among food and beverage CPG companies globally, 47% worked with up to 10 co-manufacturers in 2023.[31]
  • Among United States and European food-services and facility-management buyers, 91% expected outsourcing budgets to increase over the five years following 2024.[59]
  • Across food and beverage CPG companies globally, 55% outsourced more manufacturing in 2023 than three years earlier, according to a survey of 287 industry leaders.[31]
  • Across food and beverage CPG companies globally, 52% planned to expand their international footprint in 2023, including North America, EMEA and APAC expansion.[60]
  • Across food and beverage CPG companies globally, 75% used at least some co-manufacturing resources in 2023.[31]

11 Statistics

Finance & Pricing

Pricing signals show value over volume: retail dollars rose while pounds fell, and the U.S. average retail price for sliced bacon was $6.756 per pound in September 2026.

Pricing strategy in the bacon industry

  • 10% was the approximate year-over-year growth rate for flavored or seasoned bacon at U.S. retail in 2025.[14]
  • 59% of observed U.S. bacon prices changed in the retail pricing dataset analyzed by researchers, with bacon prices changing about every 1.76 weeks.[61]
  • $6.74 was the average U.S. retail bacon price per volume for the 52 weeks ending July 31, 2022, up 17.7% year over year.[21]
  • $6.05 was the average U.S. retail bacon price per unit for the 52 weeks ending January 28, 2024, down 6.7% year over year.[22]
  • $6.18 per pound was the average U.S. retail bacon price in 2025, up 2.2% from 2024.[14]

Cost reduction in the bacon industry

  • 2 processing improvements—integrated bacon-bit production and increased slicing capacity—were included in Daily’s Missouri expansion to support value-added products.[22]
  • $100 million to $150 million was the projected annual operating-income benefit from Hormel Foods’ Transform and Modernize initiative, which included bacon-related branded growth and lower operating costs.[23]
  • 25% was the increase Tyson Foods applied to pork-product prices in fiscal 2021 to recover higher operating costs, according to reporting on the bacon supply chain.[19]
  • 2.2% was the 2025 increase in average U.S. retail bacon price per pound, indicating partial pass-through of industry cost pressures.[14]
  • 2 cost levers—lower logistics expenses and Transform and Modernize savings—partly offset Hormel Foods’ fiscal-2024 segment-profit pressure while bacon brands grew.[23]

Profitability in the bacon industry

  • 3.4% was Hormel Foods’ fiscal-2024 Foodservice volume growth, driven partly by bacon products.[62]
  • 5.6% was Hormel Foods’ fiscal-2024 Foodservice net-sales growth, with bacon listed among the leading categories.[62]
  • 6.9% was the increase in U.S. bacon prices from May 2023 to May 2024, supporting revenue but pressuring consumer demand.[63]
  • 0.1% was Hormel Foods’ fiscal-2024 Foodservice segment-profit growth, despite strong bacon and premium-protein performance.[62]
  • $596.292 million was Hormel Foods’ fiscal-2024 Foodservice segment profit, with bacon among the categories driving volume and sales growth.[62]

Financial planning in the bacon industry

  • 150 jobs were the long-term workforce target for Daily’s Premium Meats’ expanded Missouri bacon plant.[22]
  • $355 million was Tyson Foods’ planned capital expenditure for its Bowling Green, Kentucky, bacon facility.[3]
  • 1.25 million pounds per week was Daily’s Premium Meats’ planned smoked-bacon output, providing a production target for capacity planning.[57]
  • 111,000 square feet was the planned size of Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri expansion, a capacity-planning project for bacon and bacon bits.[22]
  • 130 million pounds of sausage capacity was included in JBS USA’s Ankeny facility plan alongside investment in precooked bacon production.[28]

12 Statistics

Product & Service

Format diversification continues, with convenience bacon growing 2.7% for the 52 weeks ending August 11, 2024, and uncured bacon at 2% of the U.S. retail bacon category in 2025.

Product development in the bacon industry

  • 10% year-over-year growth was reported for flavored or seasoned bacon at U.S. retail, outpacing the overall bacon category.[14]
  • 7.5% growth in new product introductions was reported for U.S. deli-meat and meat-product categories from 2017 to 2018, including bacon launches.[21]
  • 2% of the U.S. retail bacon category consisted of uncured bacon, according to industry commentary on product innovation.[14]
  • 71% of surveyed U.S. diners said that everything tastes better with bacon, supporting continued bacon menu and product development.[26]
  • 2.7% growth was recorded for convenience bacon in the United States for the 52 weeks ending August 11, 2024.[64]

Product lifecycle in the bacon industry

  • 2 weeks was the recommended refrigerated storage life for unopened bacon in a 2025 food-bank shelf-life guide.[65]
  • 21 days was the average available retail life for smoked bacon in the United Kingdom in 2019.[66]
  • 4% of sampled bacon products in the United Kingdom had no open-life statement on the packaging in the 2019 retail survey.[67]
  • 30–40 days was the reported commercial shelf-life range for bacon products in a storage study of reduced-salt formulations.[68]
  • 6 months was the recommended frozen storage life for unopened bacon in a 2025 food-bank shelf-life guide.[65]

Value proposition in the bacon industry

  • 1.6 billion pounds of bacon were estimated to be sold annually through U.S. foodservice channels.[25]
  • 58% of surveyed U.S. diners said breakfast is not complete without bacon.[26]
  • 71% of surveyed U.S. diners said that everything tastes better with bacon, indicating a strong flavor-based value proposition.[14]
  • 8% was bacon’s reported share of retail meat choices in the September 2024 U.S. Meat Demand Monitor.[69]
  • $6.6 billion in annual U.S. retail sales and approximately 1 billion pounds sold annually were attributed to retail pork bacon.[25]

13 Statistics

Sustainability & Ethics

Emissions reporting appears at product and facility intensity levels, including Dawn Pork & Bacon’s 36.3% Scope 1 and 2 reduction and 190.7 kWh/t energy intensity in 2023.

Sustainability in the bacon industry

  • 36.3% was the reduction in Dawn Pork & Bacon’s Scope 1 and 2 emissions against its 2024 milestone, Ireland.[70]
  • 190.7 kWh/t was Dawn Pork & Bacon’s energy intensity in 2023, Ireland.[70]
  • 2% of retail bacon was uncured bacon in 2025, according to U.S. category reporting.[14]
  • 5.01 tCO₂e/t was Dawn Pork & Bacon’s Scope 3 emissions intensity in 2024, Ireland.[70]
  • 1,935 tCO₂e were Dawn Pork & Bacon’s Scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2023, Ireland.[70]

ESG in the bacon industry

  • 90% of Pilgrim’s U.S. facility-sanitation contracts had moved from third-party providers to internal teams by 2024.[71]
  • 18.8% was Pilgrim’s global reduction in absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions from 2019 to 2024.[71]
  • 1,012,024 metric tons CO₂e were Pilgrim’s U.S. Scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2024.[71]
  • 335,165 metric tons CO₂e were Pilgrim’s Europe Scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2024.[71]
  • 1,576,550 metric tons CO₂e were Pilgrim’s total Scope 1 and 2 emissions in 2024.[71]

Ethics in the bacon industry

  • 40% of Dine Brands’ pork supply came from group-housing suppliers in its previous reported period.[23]
  • 92% of Panera’s total pork supply was represented by its 2018 gestation-crate-free bacon, sausage and ham sourcing.[72]
  • 50% of Dine Brands’ pork supply came from suppliers using group-housing systems in December 2023, including bacon supply.[23]
  • 7 days was the maximum post-insemination period that Bon Appétit’s pork supplier permitted sows to remain in individual crates in 2019.[72]
  • 100% of Au Bon Pain’s bacon, breakfast sausage and ham were reported gestation-crate-free in 2018.[72]

CSR in the bacon industry

  • 87% of Pilgrim’s Europe team members participated in engagement surveys in 2023.[71]
  • 332,000 training hours were completed by Pilgrim’s employees in 2023.[73]
  • 1,394,426 training hours were completed by Pilgrim’s employees in 2024.[73]
  • 61,600 people were employed by Pilgrim’s as of December 29, 2024, across its global operations serving meat markets including pork and bacon.[73]
  • 93% of Pilgrim’s U.S. team members participated in engagement surveys in 2023.[71]

Carbon footprint in the bacon industry

  • 14,297,276 metric tons CO₂e came from Pilgrim’s purchased goods and services in 2023.[71]
  • 17,528,235 metric tons CO₂e were Pilgrim’s reported Scope 3 emissions in 2021.[71]
  • 19,673,089 metric tons CO₂e were Pilgrim’s reported Scope 3 emissions in 2022.[71]
  • 13,961,705 metric tons CO₂e came from Pilgrim’s purchased goods and services in 2022.[71]
  • 1,030,008 metric tons CO₂e came from Pilgrim’s upstream transportation and distribution in 2021.[71]

15 Statistics

Globalization & Expansion

Export footprint remains broad, with 76 countries supplying bacon exports and China at 42.1% of shipments in Zauba’s trade database.

Globalization in the bacon industry

  • 76 countries supplied bacon exports recorded in Zauba’s trade database, with China accounting for 42.1% of shipments, according to the latest available data.[85]
  • 13% of Smithfield Foods’ total sales came from export markets in the nine months ended September 29, 2024, reflecting the company’s international pork-products reach.[84]
  • 3 international operating areas were identified in Smithfield Foods’ business structure: the United States, Mexico and export markets served through its pork operations.[84]

Cultural adaptation in the bacon industry

  • 66% of millennial diners said they would try a unique bacon-infused menu item such as a bacon milkshake, donut or cake in Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 survey.[26]
  • 58% of diners said breakfast is not complete without bacon, according to Smithfield Culinary’s 2024 patron survey.[26]
  • 8% of Canadian bacon consumers surveyed said they loved bacon more than their spouse, according to a 2018 consumer study commissioned by duBreton.[86]
  • 52% of surveyed diners preferred crispy bacon, while 20% preferred medium-cooked bacon, showing differing preparation preferences within the U.S. dining market.[26]

Supplier management in the bacon industry

  • Approximately 80% of Smithfield Foods’ packaged-meat raw materials were sourced from its Fresh Pork segment in fiscal 2025, indicating substantial internal supply integration.[84]
  • 31% of Monogram Foods’ total company revenue came from its two Iowa bacon plants, demonstrating the importance of dedicated bacon-processing assets in its supply network.[22]
  • 60 million pounds of annual bacon-processing capacity were added by Daily’s Premium Meats in St. Joseph, Missouri, to improve supply reliability and customer flexibility.[25]
  • 2 companies, Seaboard Foods and Triumph Foods, jointly own Daily’s Premium Meats, supporting integrated supply and processing for bacon products.[25]

Stakeholder management in the bacon industry

  • 67% of U.S. households reported purchasing value-added meats, a customer-demand indicator cited by Daily’s Premium Meats in its 2026 facility expansion announcement.[25]
  • 4 workers died and nearly 1,300 were infected at a major U.S. meat-processing plant during the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak, highlighting workforce-health risks in bacon supply chains.[19]
  • 150 jobs are expected when Daily’s Premium Meats’ expanded St. Joseph bacon facility reaches full operation, linking capacity growth with local employment commitments.[87]
  • 100 initial jobs are expected from Daily’s Premium Meats’ Missouri expansion, according to Seaboard Foods’ announcement of the project.[25]

Distribution channels in the bacon industry

  • 2 million pounds of bacon per week is the expected output of Tyson Foods’ Kentucky facility serving Wright Brand and Jimmy Dean channels.[88]
  • Approximately 1 billion pounds of retail pork bacon were sold annually in the United States, according to Daily’s Premium Meats’ 2026 market description.[25]
  • Approximately 1.6 billion pounds of pork bacon were consumed through U.S. foodservice annually, according to Daily’s Premium Meats.[25]
  • 74% of bacon volume sold through foodservice moved through limited-service restaurants, according to U.S. pork-market analysis.[89]
  • Over 16,000 retail locations carried Bacon Up products by 2025, up from 9 stores at launch in 2018, showing rapid expansion across grocery, specialty and foodservice channels.[90]

Key questions about the bacon industry

How large is the U.S. bacon market in 2025?
U.S. retail bacon sales totaled about $7.1 billion in 2025. A separate estimate places the broader U.S. bacon market at $8.42 billion in 2025.
What growth did the U.S. bacon category show in 2025 and what do forecasts project into 2035?
U.S. retail bacon sales grew 2.8% in 2025 in dollars while pounds sold declined 0.3%. Emergen Research forecasts $8.86 billion in 2026 rising to $13.24 billion by 2035, a 4.6% CAGR from 2026 to 2035.
Which companies lead the bacon industry?
JBS and Cranswick are tied at the top of Gitnux's 2026 bacon ranking with an Overall score of 9.4 each.
What automation signals are showing up in bacon processing operations?
Automation is replacing manual tasks: 2 robots replaced manual bacon-salting work at Danish Crown’s Blans facility, handling 120–130 tons per day. Tyson reported a $355 million investment in Bowling Green, Kentucky, using robotics and automated technologies.
How concentrated is hog slaughter that feeds bacon processing in the U.S.?
The 15 largest hog-slaughter plants accounted for 65% of hog slaughter in 2025. The measure covers pork processing broadly rather than bacon alone.
Where does regulation focus for bacon in the United States?
Bacon is regulated as a meat product under USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service oversight. Curing commonly uses salt, nitrate or nitrite, and labels list ingredients in descending order by weight and identify required processing information where applicable.
Reference

Cite This Report

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APA
Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 11). Bacon Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/bacon-industry-statistics
MLA
Samuel Norberg. "Bacon Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 11 Nov 2026, https://gitnux.org/bacon-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Samuel Norberg. 2026. "Bacon Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/bacon-industry-statistics.

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