Finns eat less meat, milk last year

People in Finland consumed an average of 148 kilograms of liquid milk products, 80 kilograms of meat, 81 kilograms of cereal, 12 kilograms of eggs, 15 kilograms of fish, 66 kilograms of fruit and 66 kilograms of vegetables per head last year, according to the Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke).

Last year, the total consumption of meat was almost 80 kg per capita, when game and offal are also taken into account. Total consumption decreased from the previous year by about 1.8 per cent, i.e. 1.5 kilograms per capita.

“The consumption of poultry last year increased by almost four per cent from that in 2018. Its consumption is now 26.6 kilograms per capita. In turn, the consumption of pork decreased by approximately five per cent, but its consumption still remains higher than that of poultry at 30.8 kg. An average of 18.8 kg of beef was consumed per capita last year, about half a kilogram less than in the previous year,” said Luke senior Specialist Erja Mikkola.

The total consumption of cereal in 2019 increased by more than two kilograms per capita from 2018 to approximately 81 kilograms. The growth was mainly attributable to the increased consumption of oats. The consumption of oats increased from the previous year by almost two kilograms, or almost 30 per cent, to 9.5 kilograms per capita. The oat boom seems to have gathered pace again after declining for a time. The consumption of rice last year increased by half a kilogram from that in the previous year, while the consumption of wheat decreased slightly. The consumption of other cereals remained nearly unchanged.

The consumption of milk decreased again by approximately five per cent from that in the previous year. The same thing happened in 2018. The consumption of skimmed milk decreased by almost eight per cent, that of low-fat milk decreased by approximately four per cent, and that of whole milk decreased by one per cent. All in all, approximately 102 litres of milk was consumed per capita last year. The shares of different types of milk of the total consumption remained unchanged, with low-fat milk at 57 per cent, skimmed milk at approximately 30 per cent and whole milk at just over ten per cent.

On an average, the consumption of dairy products either declined slightly or remained unchanged in 2019. The consumption of sour milk, yoghurt, curdled milk (viili), and cream last year decreased by a few per cent year on year. The consumption of other milk-based products, such as flavoured quarks, grew.

In 2019, the total consumption of liquid milk products was 148 kg per capita, or some four per cent less than that in the previous year.

“The consumption of cheese decreased slightly to approximately 25 kilograms. Butter was also consumed slightly less than in the previous year, 3.3 kilograms,” Mikkola added.

Total fish consumption remained at 14.9 kg per capita. The consumption of canned fish increased slightly. According to the Balance Sheet for Food Commodities, no major changes have taken place in total fish consumption for many years. The consumption of eggs has also not fluctuated much in the last few years, and it was again some 12 kilograms in 2019.

The consumption of fresh fruit was approximately 59 kilograms per capita. The consumption of citrus fruits in 2019 increased by half a kilogram from that in the previous year to 14.3 kilograms. The consumption of other types of fresh fruit declined slightly and was slightly less than 45 kilograms per capita last year. Slightly less than seven kilograms of fruit preserves and dried fruit were consumed last year per capita. The consumption of vegetables increased from the previous year. Approximately 66 kilograms of fresh vegetables were consumed per capita, but the figure also includes any waste.