Meat consumption worldwide 1990-2021, by type

In 2021, around 132.3 million tons of poultry meat were consumed worldwide, making it the most consumed type of meat globally. Pork was the second most consumed meat worldwide, followed by beef and veal.

Leading consumers

The per capita consumption of meat is forecast to grow in every part of the world by 2031. OECD countries had the highest per capita consumption of meat from 2019 to 2021, at 69.5 kilograms of retail weight per person. The world average per capita consumption is only about 34.1 kilograms.

Shift towards meat substitutes

Meat production is a significant greenhouse gas emitter and beef specifically emits more greenhouse gases than any other food product. Because of this and other climate change threats caused by meat production, such as deforestation, meat alternatives have been on the rise. It is projected that by 2040, 25 percent of all “meat” consumed will be vegan meat alternatives and only 40 percent of consumption will be from traditionally produced meat.