September 10, 2024

Meat output by German slaughterhouses rose 1.3% year-on-year in H1 2024

Slaughterhouses in Germany produced almost 3.4 million tonnes of meat in the first half of 2024, an increase of 1.3% compared to the same period last year, according to preliminary data from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).

A total of 24 million pigs, cattle, sheep, goats, and horses, and 344.3 million chickens, turkeys, and ducks were slaughtered in the first half. For the first time since 2016, there was a slight increase in pork production in the period.

In the first six months of 2024, German slaughterhouses slaughtered 21.9 million pigs, a small increase of 0.4% (+78,100 head) compared to the previous year. Of these pigs, 96.6% (21.2 million) were of domestic origin (+0.4% or +86,600 head compared to the previous year) and the remaining 734,000 head were of foreign origin (-1.1%). Therefore, the proportion of pigs of foreign origin in the total number of pigs slaughtered was 3.4% in the first half of 2024.

The amount of pork produced in the first half of 2024 was 2.1 million tonnes, 1.1% (+22,400 tonnes) above the same period last year. For the first time since 2016, there was a slight increase in pork production in the first half, following a continued decline in slaughtering in Germany.

However, in the first half of 2016, there were 7.4 million more head slaughtered and 2.8 million tonees were produced (661,400 tonnes more pork than in 2024).

For years, pork has accounted for the largest share of meat production in Germany. In the first half of 2024, 62% of the meat produced was pork. This was followed by poultry meat with 23% and beef with 14.6%.

- Destatis