2013 US Meat Production Will Sharply Decline

A recent report from the US Department of Agriculture is forecasting that significantly less meat will be produced in 2013 compared to previous years due in large part to increased feed costs, while a statistical analysis of meat demand by countinganimals.com suggests the trend is due to the fact that US citizens just don’t want to eat as much meat. The USDA report predicts that next year Americans will eat a half billion fewer chickens and 400,000 fewer cows compared to 2006, as well as 12 million fewer pigs compared to 2007, and 22 million fewer turkeys than in 2008. The Counting Animals’ study suggests that 93 percent of the chicken consumption decline and 70 percent of the beef consumption decline is not due to external factors such as cost increase, but simply reduced desire. In October, the Worldwatch Institute reported that global meat consumption was already slumping.