Published on
updated on
Reading 2 min.
While a recent Deloitte study indicated that more than 40% of French people do not eat three meals a day, the lack of financial means prevents nearly 10% of the European population from buying a beef steak or a whiting fillet. This is particularly the case in Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Hungary and even in France, where this rate exceeds the European average.
It was an announcement in the form of good news for the environment, given the impact of livestock farming which produces carbon dioxide but also methane: beef consumption has fallen by 19% in the space of twenty years, according to data from FranceAgrimer published at the end of June. And between 2022 and 2023 alone, all meats combined, the French devoured 1.7% fewer steaks, sirloins and other cuts. While ecological awareness is real, we must not forget the inflationary context which has weighed on household spending. In 2023, on agricultural markets, cow prices increased, even rising by 30% in the space of five years for Charolais. An upward effect which logically has an impact on the prices displayed in stores. Thus, between January 2021 and July 2023, the price per kilo of fresh ground beef increased by 30% to reach 15.72 euros.
On the auction side, fish is not necessarily an alternative due to its rising cost as well. In May 2023, its price had increased by almost 30% over the last three years, according to INSEE. Whiting and hake are now often preferred by consumers over sole.
Meat and fish have thus become an expensive pleasure for many French people, to the point that 30% of consumers considered to be most at risk of poverty are financially unable to afford them every two days, according to statistics recently published by Eurostatthe statistical office of the European Union. For the entire French population, this rate is between 10% and 15%.
On a European scale, the country of gastronomy is one of those where buying meat or fish is a real financial effort, even if several countries are experiencing a much more critical situation. In Romania, almost 25% of the population cannot afford this kind of menu, as well as 20% of Bulgarians.
In the end, the European average of those who cannot afford to eat meat or fish every two days is around 9.5%. However, the rate rises to 22.3% when we only consider consumers most at risk of poverty. And if we only consider this part of the population, Slovakia is the country where meat and fish become a real luxury for 45.7% of Slovaks, ahead of Hungary (45%), Bulgaria (40%) and Romania (40%).
Conversely, it should be noted that minced steak or fish fillet appears on most Irish plates; less than 5% of the population of Oscar Wilde’s country can afford such a protein-rich menu every two days.