Poultry and fish and aquatic invertebrates have not displaced other meat sources

Not all meat sources have equal climate and environmental impacts, leading to hopes that fish and chicken could 'displace' red meat. However, this analysis of five decades of international data casts doubt that such a substitution effect is happening, and that instead all meat consumption is rising. Meat consumption of all types is a major contributor to climate change and other environmental problems, but poultry and fish and aquatic invertebrates have lower environmental impacts than most other meats. To evaluate whether the growth in consumption of lower-impact meats has suppressed other meat sources, I analysed cross-national panel data for 1961-2013. I found that the increased consumption of poultry and fish and aquatic invertebrates has not suppressed the consumption of other meat sources.

Automated summary

Despite the increase in consumption of poultry, fish, and aquatic invertebrates, it has not suppressed the consumption of other meat sources. This suggests that overall meat consumption is still rising and contributing to climate and environmental issues.