The consumption of animal products in France : current tendencies and future perspectives

Abstract

Using the statistics collected since the beginning of the 1950s by the National Accounting Bureau, this article analyses the overall trends in the consumption of animal products in France. The total amount of meat consumed has decreased regularly throughout this period. A tendency towards saturation became increasingly apparent during the 1980s. Although the results of consumption surveys demonstrate a broad spectrum of eating behavior, there is a some homogeneity with respect to certain life-style characteristics including income and age group. These different observations suggest that in addition topursuing goals of increased productivity, attention must also be given to policies of increased differentiation.