Meat industry rejects consumption control via VAT
Bonn, April 2022 - "For 90 percent of the German population, meat is part of a balanced diet. So if you want to relieve consumers, you have to do this across the entire spectrum of staple foods," says Hubert Kelliger, Chairman of the Meat Industry Association. A general reduction in VAT on groceries is a good tool to keep the costs of daily shopping from skyrocketing. When it comes to people on low incomes being able to continue to afford basic groceries, they must continue to be treated equally for tax purposes. “A VAT reduction for fruit and vegetables only promotes production abroad, where we have no influence on the production conditions. Anyone who only provides tax advantages for fruit and vegetables wants to put people on the plate and at the same time promote foreign manufacturers in particular,” Kelliger continues.
The reason for this: Germany is highly dependent on imports for fruit and vegetables. According to the Federal Office for Agriculture and Food, the degree of self-sufficiency is only around 20 percent for fruit and 36 percent for vegetables. For tomatoes it is only 10 percent. Here alone, more than 2021 tons were imported in 730.000 to cover domestic demand. "A varied vegetarian/vegan diet contradicts the desire for regionality and relies on food being produced for our consumers in other regions of the world all year round," emphasizes Kelliger.
The association also does not accept health aspects. Meat consumption has declined significantly in recent years. At the same time, however, the proportion of overweight people, for example, has continued to rise. Health is a complex interaction of many factors. This includes prevention, medical care, exercise and, of course, a balanced diet.
