Jerky - Availability

Availability

Traditional jerky, made from sliced, whole muscle meat, is readily available in the United States and Canada in varying meats, brands and qualities, both as packaged and unpackaged. These products are available in nearly every convenience store, gas station, supermarket, and variety shop in those countries.

A similar, less expensive product is made with finely ground meat, mixed with flavors, then the mush is processed into thin dried strips. The finished item labeled as jerky, but with the qualifier "ground and formed". This product is widely available in general interest stores, such as supermarkets and convenience stores.

Also popular is shredded dry jerky (meat floss) sold in containers resembling snuff or dip. Jerky made in the traditional style is also a ubiquitous staple of farmers' markets in rural areas all over North America.

In addition to being quite common in the United States and Canada, jerky is also gaining popularity in supermarkets, convenience stores and online retailers. In Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, jerky products are available and becoming more common. They are carried by some major supermarkets, and now also smaller stores. In China, in addition to the more traditional forms of jerky, there is also a similar product which is usually made from pork called pork chip.

A similar product is quite popular in Rome, Italy, and its hinterland: it is called coppiette and was originally made with horse or donkey meat, but it is now generally made with pork. Coppiette are seasoned with red pepper and fennel seeds. Coppiette were usually eaten while drinking wine (mostly white) in Roman osterie. In Tamil Nadu, India the dish is known as uppu kandam which forms part of authentic non vegetarian cuisine.

In Ethiopia jerky is called qwant'a. In addition to salt, it is seasoned with black pepper and either berbere or awaze.

A similar product, biltong, is common in South African cuisine; however, it differs very much in production process and taste.

Since 1996, jerky has been selected by astronauts as space food several times for space flight due to its light weight and high level of nutrition.