The German Food and Agriculture Ministry reported on Tuesday that poultry production in the country rose 2.5 percent to 1.66 million metric tons in 2011.

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Of this, 1.19 million tons of chicken, 401,000 tons of turkey meat, 63,000 tons of duck and 4,500 tons of goose were produced, according to a ministry statement. Poultry imports also rose in Germany over 2011. Imports increased 26 per cent to 98,300 tons. Exports rose by 5.4 per cent to 312,700 tons.

Although EU forecasts have predicted contraction in the poultry market, on falling demand for meat across Europe, EU analysts have suggested that poultry meat will be largely unaffected, due to its ‘healthy’ image. Germany’s national per-capita poultry consumption rose 0.2 kg to 18.9 kg in 2011.

The German rise comes in the face of public health scares and protests against industrial farming practices in the country; in December 2011, an investigation found half of all poultry sold in German supermarkets contained harmful antibiotic resistant bacteria and in January this year 23,000 demonstrators and small farmers took to the streets in Berlin to demand agricultural reform along environmentally conscious and socially just lines.

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