Germany chains its second consecutive year of increase in meat consumption, reaching 53.2 kg per person in 2024, according to preliminary data from which Eurocarne has echoed. Poultry was the meat protein with the greatest growth, reaching 13.6 kg per capita, while pork remained practically stable at 28.4 kg, and beef reached 9.3 kg per person, despite the increase in the price of this last category.
Overall, total consumption stood at 4.44 million tons, which represents an increase of 0.8% compared to 2023. This increase occurred in a context of rising average prices, with a rise of 1.3%, although the price of poultry meat was even lower than the previous year.
Recovery of national production
One of the keys to this stability has been the recovery of national production, which grew by 1.4%, up to 7.3 million tons. The increase in the production of pork (+1.9%), followed by chicken (+1.3%) and beef (+1.1%) is particularly noteworthy. On the contrary, the production of turkeys, ducks, geese, sheep and goats went down.
In the field of foreign trade, imports decreased by 1.4%, up to 3.14 million tons, due to a lower entry of pork and beef. However, purchases of poultry will increase. Exports also fell slightly (-0.3%), although pork sales to third countries rebounded strongly.
This balance between consumption and production led to a slight increase in the self-sufficiency rate, which went from 119.5% in 2023 to 120.5% in 2024. By category, pork reached 134.6%, beef 108.2% and poultry 100.4%. Even so, the most demanded cuts, such as the fillet or the pork chop, present a lower self-sufficiency than the average.
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