Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 10/14/15


As Chinese affluence has increased, so has animal protein consumption and that appetite for meat will likely continue to grow, according to a recent paper produced jointly by PricewaterhouseCoopers UK’s China Business Group and Agribusiness team.
These dietary changes will place enormous burdens on an already challenged domestic food system and have significant ramifications on international trade in agriculture.

The average Chinese consumer eats some 57kg (125 pounds) of meat a year, an increase of 11kg (24 pounds) from 2003.
“If Chinese meat consumption mirrors other developed Chinese societies over time, we can assume Taiwan’s current 74kg (163 pounds) consumption is a realistic long-term extrapolation,” the paper stated. 

Increasing meat consumption has manifested itself in China losing its near self-sufficiency in soybeans. Chinese imports of soybeans have steadily increased and now represent 87 percent of consumption. Corn is at the beginning of a trajectory that will likely prove similar to the experience of soybeans. China now imports a small quantity of corn compared to the past when it was self-sufficient.

Calories
The report estimated Chinese consumers took in about 1,863 calories per day in 1971, rising to 2,819 by 2001 and up to 3,074 calories daily in 2011. That means that by 2011, the average Chinese consumer was taking in more calories per day than the average Malaysian, Thai, Indonesian, Filipino, Vietnamese and even Japanese. More importantly, calorie consumption was fast approaching the levels of South Korea, the UK and the United States.

In vegetal products, Chinese per-capita calorie consumption has risen by about a third over the past five decades, while that from animal products has increased some four and a half times.

In 1971, the average Chinese consumer was only getting 125 calories daily from animal protein. The report estimated that by 2011, animal protein daily intake accounted for 691 calories.

Compared to the United States and the UK, Chinese vegetal-derived calories in 2011 are just marginally behind, while animal-derived calories are still 30 percent lower.

“This implies that in the future, growth in vegetal consumption is likely to be muted, but growth in animal protein will likely remain strong. In other words, the overall Chinese food consumption picture will remain a globally prominent theme in the years ahead — at least with respect to animal products,” the report concluded.   

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