Only 10 grams of meat per day in Germany

2023-05-30 16:33:00

DIET – According to a information reported by the German daily Bild, the German Nutrition Society (DGE) now recommends reducing meat consumption to 10 grams per day per person to combat global warming. A real earthquake in the land of currywurst.

On May 22, it was the Court of Auditors which suggested to the French, in a detailed report, to reduce their meat consumption to 500 grams per week.

A sudden and radical renunciation

The average meat consumption of Germans is 109 grams per day, or about 763 grams per week. The population will therefore have to drastically change its eating behavior if it agrees to comply with this new strategy. A previous recommendation from the same organization was less severe (600 grams of meat per week), so why such a reversal?

The German nutrition authority tells the daily Bild that it now takes into account factors other than just “health” to base its decisions on.

Cattle farming sacrificed on the altar of global warming

« No one wants to ban people from their occasional currywurst. But overall meat consumption in the population is too high for health and sustainability reasons, it’s a scientific fact“, indicates the DGE to the German newspaper.

From now on, environmental factors are also an integral part of the evaluation criteria of the nutrition agency. This means that it no longer confines itself to stating how much meat is healthy, or what kind of meat to avoid, it also takes into account the CO₂ balance of food.

Admittedly, the DGE only publishes recommendations. Just don’t follow them. Except that this body is also a certification body.

Not just a recommendation

Some activities depend directly on the approval of the DGE, this is particularly the case for school canteens. Indeed, it awards certificates to canteens. Those that do not have it are almost considered unhealthy. Will the nutrition authority continue to issue certifications to canteens that offer meat beyond the recommended quota?

Note that the directives of the DGE have been taken into account in the new nutritional strategy proposed by the German Minister of Agriculture Cem Özdemir. “The Pathway to the Federal Government’s Nutrition Strategy” was adopted by his cabinet in December 2022 and a plan is due to be approved by the end of the year.