Mexico meat consumption forecast 2026, Digi Mart USA News (Mexico): Meat consumption in Mexico will grow only 0.8% in 2026, despite lower prices for chicken and pork, the Mexican Meat Council (Comecarne) estimated on Thursday. The organization cited weaker household purchasing power and higher operating costs.
At a press conference, the council projected that by the end of this year chicken consumption will rise 1.3% and pork consumption 1.5%, while beef consumption will fall 1.5%. Overall meat consumption would average only a 0.8% increase in 2026, marking the fourth consecutive year of growth in consumption of chicken, pork and beef.
Per capita meat consumption reached 85.3 kilograms in 2025. Through September, chicken and pork consumption still showed year-over-year increases of 2.1% and 2.4%, respectively, while beef consumption fell 2.4%.
Comecarne pointed to lower purchasing power and more moderate wage mass adjustments, from 7.9% in 2025 to 7.1% in 2026. It also cited higher energy, transportation and security costs for producers.
According to the presentation, between January and October consumer prices for chicken fell 4.5% year over year and pork fell 2.8%, while beef rose 7.4%. At the producer level, chicken prices dropped 12.5% and pork 5.1% between January and September, while beef rose 7.6%.
The council said savings on raw materials do not always fully reach consumers because the industry faces labor, energy and logistics costs. Among inputs, imported yellow corn fell 11.2%, but fertilizers rose between January and October: ammonium sulfate 20.7%, urea 20.4% and diammonium phosphate 8.1%.
In 2025, Mexico consumed 11.55 million tons of meat, or 85.3 kilograms per inhabitant. National production reached 8.73 million tons, up 5.5% from the previous year, while imports totaled 3.27 million tons, up 7.6%.
From January to September 2026, slaughter in plants with international certifications increased 15.9% for pork and 5.9% for beef, but fell 0.2% for chicken. For 2027, Comecarne expects consumer prices to rise 6% for beef, 4.8% for pork and 3.3% for chicken, in a scenario shaped by cost pressures and international meat availability.
