Ten top Meat Facts revealed by The Food Foundation

Questions about how much meat we ought to be eating, and what type, and from where, must be tackled if we are to have any chance of averting the looming public health and environmental crises being driven by our current diets.

Eating less meat, produced to better standards, and more whole plant-based foods is something health and environmental organisations globally are agreed ought to happen.

Yet despite both the National Food Strategy and Climate Change Committee recommending a reduction in meat consumption there is little action from the Government or businesses in terms of supporting a shift towards more plant-rich diets.

This new briefing sets out key data on meat consumption and recommendations for how to reduce it.

Download the full report here

It also reveals ten top meat facts:

1. The UK eats twice as much meat as the global average.
2. Over a third of the meat children eat is processed, despite the associated health risks.
3. Northern Ireland eats the largest amount of meat of all UK nations.
4. Young men aged 19 to 40 eat the largest amount of processed meat of all demographic groups.
5. 42% of the meat we eat is chicken, despite concerns around the way we farm and feed chickens.
6. Almost a third of all meat eaten by men is processed, with men eating a fifth more processed meat than women.
7. 9% of the meat children aged under 18 eat comes from pizza.
8. Over a third of all the processed meat we eat in the UK is eaten out of the home. 
9. 4 of the 5 most commonly eaten meat-containing dishes from fast food outlets are processed and/or ultra-processed meat.
10. A third of the red meat we import is processed.