Disease and Drought Curb Meat Production and Consumption

Abstract

Global meat production rose to 297 million tons in 2011, an increase of 0.8 percent over 2010 production levels.¹ By the end of 2012, meat production was projected to reach 302 million tons, an increase of 1.6 percent over 2011.² These are relatively low rates of growth compared with previous years: in 2010, meat production rose by 2.6 percent, and since 2001 production has risen by 20 percent.³ (See Figure 1.) According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), record drought in the American Midwest, disease outbreaks, and rising prices of livestock feed in 2011 and 2012 all contributed to the lower rises in production.⁴ Natural disasters in Japan and Pakistan also constrained output and disrupted trade.⁵