Uncertain future for the meat industry – rising prices, declining consumption and new challenges

Consumption is slowly increasing, while prices are rising

There is a decline in the volume of meat consumption: in 2019, we bought an average of 83 kilograms of fresh meat per year, by 2024 this amount had decreased to 76 kilograms. At the same time, the average price of fresh meat increased from 1,724 HUF/kg to 2,930 HUF/kg in five years – an increase of almost 70 percent. The trend is similar for processed meats: in 2019, we bought 48 kilograms, and by 2024, this decreased to 44 kilograms, while prices increased from 978 HUF/kg to 1653 HUF/kg.

The change in purchasing habits is clearly demonstrated by the fact that Hungarian households spend less than 3000 HUF per occasion on fresh meat and an average of 1733 HUF on processed products. About 3000 tons of smoked hams, representing the more premium category, were sold in 2024, with an average of 1.8 kilograms per household, with a spending of 5838 HUF.

Discounters and imports: increasing pressure on domestic manufacturers

According to the association, the market environment is further complicated by the increasing dominance of discount chains, which are displacing convenience stores, especially in the processed products market. At the same time, import pressure is also increasing, and quality degradation is appearing in more and more places, which is detrimental to the competitiveness of the domestic industry and consumer confidence in the long term.

“It can be said that the real value of food is decreasing in the long term. This is not true for the past 2-3 years, but the trend is not new, and there is a lot of uncertainty,” said Tamás Éder, the social president of the Hungarian Meat Industry Association.