Farmed Animals Numbers Drop In Europe As Meat Production Falls

The production of meat and the numbers of animals being farmed across Europe are on a downward trajectory, according to a new report. The numbers of chickens being slaughtered for meat is on the rise, however.

Published by Eurostat, the European Union’s statistics and data hub, the report shows that between 2003 and 2023, there have been large declines in some farmed animal populations. The number of sheeps* and goats has dropped the most, by 22 percent. Numbers of pigs dropped by nearly 15 percent, while cows raised for meat fell by nine percent.

The fall in the production of meat from pigs is notable because of the historically large amount produced in Europe, particularly in Spain, Germany, Denmark, and the Netherlands. It hit its peak in 2021 at 23.4 million tonnes but dropped by 11.8 percent in 2023 — the lowest level of production in the 15 years of Eurostat records.

However, production of meat from chickens increased by 2.3 percent from 2022 to 2023. The EU now produces 3.5 million tonnes more chicken meat than it did in 2008.

Farmed pigs — Antonello – stock.adobe.com Production of pig meat has decline sharply

Falling demand for meat

Meat eating among Europeans has been declining in recent years. A 2023 study by the Good Food Institute Europe (GFI) found that half of Europeans said they had cut their meat consumption. This represented an increase from two years previously. Most were motivated by health, followed by animal welfare and the environment. These trends are reflected in the UK too, where meat consumption hit a record low in 2023.

Another report by GFI revealed that between 2020 and 2022, animal-based meat and milk sales dropped by eight and nine percent, respectively. Over the same period, there was a 21 percent increase in sales of plant-based meat products, and a 20 percent increase in plant-based milks sales.

*We use “sheep” rather than “sheep” to emphasize that these animals are individuals