Claim
Around 80 billion land animals are slaughtered for food each year worldwide, the large majority of them chickens.
About ten land animals per person per year, most of them chickens. Fish are not counted individually, but likely add far more.
- Last reviewed
- Reviewer
- Editorial placeholder
- Status
- sample
Sample data. The figures and sources on this page are demonstration records showing how evidence will be presented. They are approximate and have not yet been through our review process. Read about how we will verify evidence.
Why this rating: Based on official production statistics reported by almost every country.
Supported by multiple systematic reviews or large, consistent studies using different methods, with few plausible alternative explanations.
Explanation
Chickens dominate the count because they are small, grow quickly and are eaten in huge numbers.
Official statistics count fish by tonnage rather than by individual, so the total for all animals is much higher but less certain.
Limitations
- National reporting quality varies; backyard and informal slaughter is under-counted.
Methodology
- FAO compiles national statistics of animals slaughtered for meat.
Sources for this claim
Each source links to our record of what it found, its limitations and what we used it for, with a link to the original.
- 1FAOSTAT: Crops and livestock products — producing animals / slaughtered
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2024). FAOSTAT database.