The Mexican Council of Meat (Comecarne) considered that if the reduction of the working day is approved, it will boost the consumption of chicken, pork res, turkey and cold meats, which have had a constant increase due to a greater purchasing power of Mexicans in the last 7 years.
“In 2023, the consumption of cutting meat was 79.2 kilograms, while in 2024 it went to 82 kilograms,” said Ernesto Salazar Castillo, manager of Economic Studies and Commerce of Comecarne.
According to the economist, in just one year, the consumption of said product thanks to social programs, remittances and the minimum wage increased by 2 kilograms.
The consumption of meat shot up for the strengthening of homes in homes, said the representative of the agency that calculates that 10 million 771 thousand tons of meat in Mexico are consumed every year.
To complete that demand, which year after year, Mexican businessmen produce 8 million 183 thousand taken from meat and buy more than 3 million 043 or tons from food to the United States, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Nicaragua and Argentina.
The expert in economic issues explained that the highest meat consumption was promoted by an increase of 18 percent of government transfers in support in social programs and the rise of 12 percent of the minimum wage.
Another factor that gives power to the purchasing power of the Mexican is that more people are in the labor market, since “in the last 4 years a trend has been maintained in the unemployment rate was 2.6 percent, one of the lowest for several years and if we review the United States figures the unemployment rate is 4 percent”.
The manager said that in 2024 there was a recovery of the establishment that provide lodging services with food elaboration and this activity grew 3 percent, so there was a recovery in the collection of international tourists, which impulse the purchase and sell meat in Mexico.
The growth of international tourists was 7.4 percent and with a greater stay, which implied consumption of different foods, among meat products, said Salazar Castillo.
“In the medium place we see that these conditions will be maintained, (such as salary increase, transfers of social programs, the greatest purchasing power), we even estimate that some others that motivate the impulse of meat demand in Mexico are added,” he said.
One of factors that could boost meat consumption in Mexico is the decrease in working hours, an initiative that will begin applying from 2030, he said.
“When there is a decrease in working hours, people will normally have more time to enjoy and with that enjoyment is going to a restaurant to eat a food or at home to sit down to watch a movie and ask for a hamburger or pizza,” he said.
Each of these elements is pondering that the increase in the country’s meat demand is maintained in the coming years, he concluded.
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