Why meat is becoming more expensive - and what alternatives we might need


Daniel Bardsley
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As inflation surges in many parts of the world, some consumers have found that their money does not go as far as it used to, particularly when they are buying food.

In the US, food became 11 per cent more expensive in the 12 months to April 2022, government statistics showed, while overall inflation over the same period was a more modest 8.3 per cent.

Among foods, animal products have experienced some of the fastest price increases, reports from US media suggest.

For the year ending April 2022, the price of beef and veal went up 14.3 per cent, milk prices rose 14.7 per cent, the cost of chicken shot up by 16.4 per cent and egg prices rocketed 22.6 per cent. By contrast, inflation among key plant-based foods was in single-digit percentages.

As the prices for beef and poultry in particular have gone up, consumption has gone down
Prof Matthew Diersen,
South Dakota State University

Several factors may explain the rapid rise in the cost of meat and other animal products, including “price gouging”, where suppliers charge more because, for example, competition is limited. Concerns have been raised that the handful of big American meat producers are taking advantage of their dominant position.

But a rapid rise in the cost of meat has not just been seen in the US, and other factors such as grain price increases are also at play.

While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused a surge in grain prices, costs were rising before that, with fertiliser costs, which translate into higher food prices, increasing by 80 per cent last year and continuing to rise in 2022.

“It’s grain, in particular, that’s fed to a lot of animals,” said Prof Matin Qaim, director of the Centre for Development Research at the University of Bonn in Germany.

“That means if the components of the input are getting much more pricey, the meat is also going to be much more expensive.”

Changing buying patterns

Meat prices are thought to have increased by as much as 30 or 40 per cent in some countries. Bloomberg
Meat prices are thought to have increased by as much as 30 or 40 per cent in some countries. Bloomberg

In some countries, meat prices are thought to have increased by as much as 30 or 40 per cent, said Dr Henning Otte Hansen, senior adviser in the Department of Food and Resource Economics at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark and author of Food Economics.

Heavy food-price inflation often hits people in poorer nations hardest, he said.

“They will have to spend perhaps 80 per cent of their income on food,” he said, referring to a figure that has been reported for Angola.

In developed nations, a much smaller proportion of household income goes on food, with the figure in the US just 6.9 per cent.

But even in wealthy nations, shoppers are thought to have been changing their buying patterns to take account of increased meat prices.

“As the prices for beef and poultry, in particular, have gone up, consumption has gone down,” said Prof Matthew Diersen, an agricultural economist at South Dakota State University in the US.

“Your dollar doesn’t go as far and that’s meant some consumers have been, I think the trade calls it, trading down. You go from an expensive cut or an expensive type to a more affordable cut or type.

“The problem with that has been that poultry has been a more affordable alternative, but that was affected by some production problems.

“Moving around and changing your consumption pattern has been more difficult in the last couple of years than at other times.”

Bird flu outbreaks in the US resulted in tens of millions of birds being killed this year, disrupting egg and poultry production.

Adopt different diets

More consumers are adopting vegan, vegetarian or flexitarian diets. Getty
More consumers are adopting vegan, vegetarian or flexitarian diets. Getty

Some consumers may have been switching to other sources of protein, such as beans, while others may have simply been going without, Prof Diersen said.

But meat consumption in the US is still high by international standards. Last year, it averaged a record 102 kilograms for every person, possibly the highest figure in the world, according to statistics published by the National Chicken Council.

Meat consumption in other developed nations is also typically much greater than in developing countries but in Europe, in particular, signs of decline are evident as more consumers adopt vegan, vegetarian or flexitarian diets.

“A lot of people in Europe try to reduce their meat consumption for sustainability reasons,” Prof Qaim said.

“Sustainability may be environmental and climate concerns; there may also be, to some extent, animal welfare concerns. All these concerns are increasing with people’s wealth.”

Germany’s Federal Office of Agriculture and Food stated that last year the country’s per capita meat consumption was 55kg, the lowest for three decades. One forecast suggests overall meat consumption in Europe will begin to decline from 2035 onwards.

In developing nations, meat consumption is much lower, although it is increasing as countries become more prosperous. In China, consumption of animal products has more than doubled over the past three decades.

Prof Qaim said that in India, annual meat consumption for each person is thought to be about 5kg a year, while in poorer developing Asian and African nations, it may be in the region of 10kg.

While saying “you cannot condemn countries that increase their meat consumption”, Prof Qaim said it would be preferable if developing nations did not eventually rival the developed world in terms of annual per capita meat consumption.

“I hope they don’t, simply because the environmental and climate footprint is so big, our little Planet Earth would tremendously suffer,” he said.

In the shorter term, Dr Hansen suggested it may not be until 2023 that meat prices tail off, helped by the fact that grain prices have already peaked.

“The feedstuff ― grain ― has started to decrease. This will mean the feed costs for chicken will decrease. In the beginning of next year you will start to see a decrease in meat prices” he said.

Foods that consumers may choose instead of meat

Alternative meats

There has been growing interest ― and a reported $5 billion of investment last year ― in alternative meats, ranging from plant-based fake meats to meats produced from cultured animal cells.

Cultured meats are largely at an experimental stage and have yet to reach cost parity with meats produced from animals, but this is expected as technology improves.

Interest in plant-based meat analogues is not confined to Europe and North America, with numerous companies and products launching in Asian markets.

Whether cell-based and plant-based meat alternatives will be relevant to developing nations is, however, the subject of vigorous debate.

Organisations such as The Good Food Institute, a not-for-profit organisation with its headquarters in the US that advocates for alternative proteins, and which has received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, have argued that these foods could become important in poorer countries.

Others, such as the International Livestock Research Institute, say that alternative meats are irrelevant to poor communities, many of which have problems of hidden hunger, which refers to inadequate intake and absorption of vitamins and minerals even when people take in sufficient calories.

Plant and insect foods

Consumers looking for cheaper options as meat prices increase can turn to a variety of protein-rich plant-based foods.

“Pulses, such as lentils, and beans and peas are important plant-based protein sources,” Prof Qaim said. “People in India don’t eat a lot of meat, that’s one reason they eat a lot of pulses, and these are good sources of protein.”

He suggests that householders, particularly in developing nations, may look for alternative fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds to augment their diet as meat prices surge.

Insects are also being promoted as potential alternative protein sources, with the EU approving the use of certain insects as animal and human food in 2021 and 2022.

For example, in February the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch, gave the green light to the use of house crickets and yellow mealworms as human food in frozen, dried and powder forms.

“There’s a lot of talk about insects, but I don’t see the rapid mass movement towards insect consumption,” Prof Qaim said.

“They play a crucial role in some places that may, in the long run, increase. I don’t see that happening in Europe or other parts of the world in the near future.”

Listen: the future of Middle East food security

Short-term let permits explained

Homeowners and tenants are allowed to list their properties for rental by registering through the Dubai Tourism website to obtain a permit.

Tenants also require a letter of no objection from their landlord before being allowed to list the property.

There is a cost of Dh1,590 before starting the process, with an additional licence fee of Dh300 per bedroom being rented in your home for the duration of the rental, which ranges from three months to a year.

Anyone hoping to list a property for rental must also provide a copy of their title deeds and Ejari, as well as their Emirates ID.

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Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.

Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born. 

UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.

A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.

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She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters

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The Bio

Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
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While you're here
Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

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Updated: September 05, 2022, 7:36 AM`