New Report: US Demand for Meat to Drop Dramatically in 2013

chicken_GB.jpgA growing number of sources, from the New York Times to the Daily Livestock Report, indicates that there has been a steady decline in US meat consumption in the last several years. In fact, according to a recent report from the United States Department of Agriculture, Americans are expected to eat approximately half a billion fewer chickens and about 400,000 fewer cows in 2013 than they did in 2006. At the same time, Americans are expected to eat about 12 million fewer pigs next year, compared to peak consumption in 2007, and about 22 million fewer turkeys since a peak in 2008.

But what is driving this dramatic drop in meat consumption? The answer may lie in a recent blog post on Counting Animals, which sought to analyze American demand for meat - the extent to which people want to buy meat as distinct from the actual amount of meat that people eat. While a more detailed explanation of the math is available on Counting Animals, the bottom line is that the reason Americans are expected to eat fewer animals is because more and more Americans simply don't want to eat as much meat.

For example, the study indicates that 93% of the expected decline in chicken consumption is attributable to reduced desire for chicken, rather than an increase in cost or other potential factors that could influence the amount of chicken people buy. Similarly, nearly 70% of the drop in beef consumption is estimated to be due to decreased consumer desire for beef over other factors. In any case, this dramatic reduction in meat consumption means hundreds of millions of animals will be spared a life of cruelty and abuse.

What could be the reason people want to eat fewer animals? More and more people are learning of the horrific abuses animals face on factory farms, as well as of the benefits of plant-based eating, and are consequently making the switch to a healthy and humane vegetarian diet. To find out why so many people are leaving meat off of their plates, visit