Increased food prices and more consumers turning to vegetarian alternatives: Meat production in Germany also fell significantly last year.
The meat industry in Germany will have shrunk again in 2023. Last year was the seventh consecutive year of decline. Pork in particular was produced significantly less.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, commercial slaughterhouses produced 6.8 million tons of meat last year. That was four percent or 280,000 tons less than a year earlier.
Less pigs, more poultry
The decisive factor for the reduced production this year is the significantly lower volume of pork. According to the statistical office’s preliminary results, it fell by 6.8 percent to 4.2 million tons. While most pigs slaughtered still came from domestic farms, their number decreased year-on-year. The number of imported pigs, however, increased significantly.
The production volume of poultry meat increased slightly, and beef production was in line with the previous year. In 2023, 47.9 million pigs, cattle, sheep, goats and horses as well as 702.2 million chickens, turkeys and ducks were slaughtered in slaughterhouses.
Meat production reached its highest level to date in 2016. In the following years, the values initially fell slightly, and in 2022 there was a sharp decline of 8.1 percent for the first time.
Meat consumption continues to decline
The lower meat production in Germany has been accompanied by lower meat consumption among German citizens for years. In 2022, according to the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL), meat consumption averaged around 52 kilos per year, a minus 1.2 kilos per capita compared to 2021, after it had always declined in previous years.
Animal welfare and health in focus
On the one hand, in recent years, Germans have responded to the sharp rise in prices, which have curbed consumer enthusiasm for meat as well as many other foods. On the other hand, from the perspective of more and more consumers, health aspects as well as greater attention to animal welfare are playing a greater role.
According to the Ministry’s Nutrition Report 2023, one in ten people now use such plant-based products every day, up from five percent three years previously. The proportion is highest at 18 percent among 14 to 29 year olds and lowest at five percent among people aged 60 and over.