Poultry is the only sector in EU livestock farming expected to grow between now and 2035, according to the European Commission’s 2024 agricultural outlook.

However, the anticipated 0.5% growth in poultry output is expected to happen at only around a quarter of the pace witnessed in the previous decade and will only be possible in “some regions” due to environmental regulations and a shift to less intensive production systems.

Consumption of poultry is expected to rise by 1.6kg per head to reach an annual per capita consumption of 25.8kg by 2035.

The outlook spells out a warning for pigmeat that consumer demand will fall as a result of “further societal criticism” of intensive farming.

Pigmeat output is forecast to decline by 5.6% over the next 10 years which is roughly in line with the expected fall in domestic demand.

A decade ago, the average EU consumer ate 20.6kg of poultry and 33.4kg of pigmeat, but this gap could narrow to respective per capita demand figures of 25.8kg and 30.0kg by 2035.

The outlook states that past and future consumer preference swings are driven by health perceptions, perceived ease of preparation and price competitiveness.