June 10, 2022

 

Chicken now the most popular meat consumed, surpassing pork and beef

 

 

US government data has showed that chicken consumption is estimated to hit 98 million metric tonnes, double the amount consumed in 1999 and three times the growth rate of pork and 10 times that of beef, Bloomberg reported.

 

The cost of raising chickens has been pushed down repeatedly over the years thanks to genetics and other innovations. Six weeks after hatching, modern birds are ready for slaughter. During that time, they convert feed into protein at a rate that no other animal can match.

 

Jayson Lusk, an agricultural economist at Purdue University, said humans have continued to find ways to increase the amount of meat per bird while reducing the time that's involved.

 

As inflation makes red meat too expensive for more of the world's population, the shift to poultry is speeding up in major economies from Brazil to China. The pandemic's disruption of food supply chains, as well as the war in Ukraine, have only exacerbated this trend.

 

The ascension of chicken has a darker side to it. The birds' organs and muscles can no longer keep up with their rapid weight gain, making it difficult for them to stand. Because of the increased use of industrial production methods, bird flu outbreaks, such as the ones that recently hit the Midwest and East Coast of the US, are becoming larger and more severe.

 

Tai Lin, managing partner of Proterra Asia, a private equity firm that invests in the food industry, said the cost of production vs. total output in poultry has probably fallen to a third of what it was 30 years ago.

 

Demand is increasing at such a rapid rate that producers are unable to keep up, resulting in shortages. In the US, restaurateurs are in a fierce battle for supplies. Wingstop Inc, a chicken restaurant chain, says it wants to buy a processing plant, making it the first major US restaurant chain to go that far up the supply chain.

 

As a younger generation embraces the Western view that white meat is healthier, chicken is displacing pork, the traditional meat of celebrations, everyday cooking, and dining out, in Asia.

 

Some Chinese restaurants no longer serve pork at all, which was unthinkable only a few years ago. Wagas, an upscale, health-focused chain with locations from Beijing to Chengdu, has kale salads with chicken and avocado, seafood, and plant-based options on its menu, but no pork.

 

Chicken is also popular among Brazilians this year, as inflation has rendered beef unaffordable for many. The world's largest poultry exporter is increasing production by 4.5 percent to a new high. According to Ricardo Santin, head of exporter group ABPA, companies are adding production lines, shifts, and process improvements.

 

Demand is also on the rise in places like Europe, South Africa, and Mexico. Brett Stuart, co-founder of Global AgriTrends, a consulting firm, said he doesn't know a country in the world that doesn't have chickens, describing it as the first rung on the protein ladder.

 

Because chickens grow so quickly, they are more environmentally friendly than beef, which is increasingly being chastised for its massive greenhouse gas emissions.

 

Poultry is being used by some restaurants and businesses to help them achieve their green goals. Panera Bread Co, a bakery-café chain, has recently begun advertising Cool Food Meals, an environmentally friendly menu of chicken entrees created by the nonprofit World Resources Institute. It's part of the company's goal to remove more carbon from the atmosphere by 2050 than it emits.

 

Along with Nestle SA's food service business, food service giant Aramark has agreed to develop and sell foods with lower carbon footprints. According to the World Resources Institute, which created the programme in 2019, the push for lower-carbon meals at big companies, chains, universities, and even governments has resulted in a 16% reduction in emissions per plate.

 

Because intensive feeding operations concentrate waste products and produce odour issues, industrial chicken production also causes environmental issues. Soybeans, which are used in industrial chicken feed, have been linked to deforestation in the Amazon.

 

Some producers of slow-growing, less industrial chickens see poultry production as part of a more humane and environmentally friendly system. Despite this, no one has been able to scale such a system. By 2026, more than 200 businesses, including Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Inc and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc, have pledged to switch to new, healthier chicken breeding standards.

 

-      Bloomberg