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Pork Day is celebrated on March 1. To mark the occasion, AMA-Marketing takes a look at meat consumption trends.
AMA quality seal to be extended
Pork is the most commonly consumed meat in Austria. At the same time, the proportion of pigs reared in improved animal husbandry systems is increasing continuously, albeit slowly.
Austrians eat 33.5 kilos of pork per person
According to Statistics Austria’s supply balance, pork is the most popular meat, at 33.5 kilograms per person per year. Processed pork is particularly popular. Ham is the most popular overall, followed by extra sausage, frankfurters, knackwurst, and leberkäse. Toast, ham, bacon, and salami are also very popular. In 2023, 11,220 tons of ham and around 5,000 tons of toast ham were purchased by consumers in the food retail sector. The general trend in purchasing behavior towards convenience products is also evident in pork. When buying fresh pork, consumers are opting less for “natural” and buying more minced meat and prepared and marinated grilled meat instead.
AMA quality seal program: 1,700 fatteners produce around 2 million pigs
According to the Chamber of Agriculture, there are around 24,000 pig farmers in Austria, including those who keep one or two pigs for domestic use. Of these registered farmers, around 5,300 are “pig fatteners.”. About a third of these farms, i.e., around 1,700 pig farmers, participate in the AMA quality seal program. As a result, around two million pigs are labelled as AMA-Gütesiegel pigs every year.
The proportion of pork with organic and “more animal welfare” is increasing
In 2023, the proportion of pigs reared in Austria in the animal welfare and organic segments amounted to around 5 percent. Specifically, 145,000 animals were kept in the AMA Quality Seal program in the “More Animal Welfare” module, and 81,000 animals were classified as organic. In total, there are now 226,000 animals in husbandry systems with improved animal husbandry conditions, which corresponds to an increase of one-third compared to 2021. “We are very pleased with this development. However, we know that even more pig farms would switch to animal welfare modules if the market would bear the additional costs and the farms would have sales security,” says AMA Marketing Director Christina Mutenthaler-Sipek.
AMA with “Pig Master Plan” until 2030
AMA-Marketing insists on the “Pig Master Plan” developed together with the industry. This plan envisages that by 2030, every second pig in the AMA Quality Seal program will come from farming systems with higher animal welfare criteria. This should provide the animals with more space, littered lying areas, and, at the highest level, a corresponding outdoor climate area. Achieving this goal requires a close partnership between all parties involved. All members of the value chain, and consumers in particular, are called upon to work together to achieve this. One of Mutenthaler-Sipek’s appeals is that meat must regain its value as a high-quality food.
- source: APA/picture: Bild von Reinhard Thrainer auf Pixabay
