Meat preferences vary regionally

Pork is the favorite in East Germany

The preferences for certain types of meat are quite different in Germany: For example, above-average amounts of pork are eaten in the eastern German countries, with beef and veal being the former federal territory. In the opinion of the ZMP market researchers, this is not only due to traditional eating habits, but also to the different prices for these types of meat.

The national average of pork consumption in 2002 was 53,7 kilograms per inhabitant. According to ZMP estimates, the new federal states and Berlin accounted for 62,8 kilograms; 51,3 kilograms on the old federal territory. The pioneers in pork consumption are the people in Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, who consume on average between 65 and 66 kilograms of pork per person per year. The bottom of the list are consumers in Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg with an annual per capita consumption of 49 to 50 kilograms.

The average consumption of veal and beef in Germany in 2002 was 11,9 kilograms per capita, with a value of 10,5 kilograms resulting for the eastern German states and 12,3 kilograms in the western German states. A particularly large amount of beef and veal is consumed in Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate, at around 13 kilograms per person per year. In contrast, consumption in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is the lowest in Germany at 9,2 kilograms.

Source: Bonn [ZmP]