iStockphoto / Andreas Steidlinger
A new study into American beef consumption has shed light on a massive disparity between the Americans who are living their best lives and eating a ton of beef every day, and everyone else.
The study titled ‘Demographic and Socioeconomic Correlates of Disproportionate Beef Consumption among US Adults in an Age of Global Warming’ found that just 12% of Americans consuming beef accounted for over half of all beef consumed each day.
While the study was intended to look into how global warming or climate change can impact dietary choices, the real finding was that older men are the ones still living the American dream of being able to eat whatever you want whenever.
In a press release on Eureka Alert, the study found “those 12% – most likely to be men or people between the ages of 50 and 65 – eat what researchers called a disproportionate amount of beef on a given day, a distinction based on the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which suggest 4 ounces per day of meat, poultry, and eggs combined for those consuming 2200 calories per day.”
Just 4oz of meat per day? Have they seen the news lately? Do they not realize that we should be eating whatever we want whenever we want because food is one of the things that brings humans the most joy? I think I’m going to eat a steak tonight simply because I read this study.
The researchers were apparently surprised to find that such a small percentage of the American population consumes so much of the beef. Study author Diego Rose admitted surprise but said it also presents some interesting challenges when influencing eating habits. Writing “on one hand, if it’s only 12% accounting for half the beef consumption, you could make some big gains if you get those 12% on board. On the other hand, those 12% may be most resistant to change.”
Sure, the beef industry is “producing 8-10 times more emissions than chicken” but from where I’m sitting, we should be working on getting the other 88% of Americans to eat more beef than the 12% that eat half. The beef industry would be THRIVING.
According to the NYPost, Americans consume about 30 billion pounds of beef each year which is equivalent to about 60 pounds of beef per American. Why not more? Let’s pump those numbers.