--- title: Holy cow, we’re eating a lot of chicken - The Hustle description: Americans are increasingly wingin’ it. What’s that mean for the beef business? image: https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/458357979-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Chicken-vs-Beef-v1_20230706225246.webp --- # Holy cow, we’re eating a lot of chicken ![Jacob Cohen](https://thehustle.co/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/IMG_5670-1-modified-768x768.png?width=48&height=48&name=IMG_5670-1-modified-768x768.png) [Jacob Cohen](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/author/jacob-cohen) [Jacob Cohen Twitter profile ](https://twitter.com/ImJacobCohen) Published: July 11, 2023 Updated: October 11, 2023 In case it wasn’t clear from the chart above, America is an undeniable chick magnet. ![per capita consumption of beef and chicken](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hs-fs/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/458357979-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Chicken-vs-Beef-v1_20230706225246.webp?width=595&height=400&name=458357979-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Chicken-vs-Beef-v1_20230706225246.webp) The cows are probably happy. Heck, for nearly three decades Chick-fil-A has [hired them](https://www.chick-fil-a.com/stories/inside-chick-fil-a/2023/06/20/celebrating-the-cows) to paint “Eat Mor Chikin” billboards, infiltrate burger boardrooms, parachute onto fields, and launch into space — all in the name of getting people to eat more bird. But, for the cows, while some lives may be spared, paychecks probably won’t. #### **Chickening out** US chicken consumption per capita flew past beef in 1993 and [hasn’t stopped](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-06-23/why-beef-beyond-fake-meat-struggle-to-compete-with-america-s-chicken-obsession?sref=3Ac2yX40) since, per *Bloomberg*. This year, Americans are forecast to eat 100.9 pounds of chicken, on average, compared to 56.3 pounds of beef. - Across the US cattle production industry, 700k+ businesses generated $85B in 2022 revenue; meatpacking accounts for another $300B annually. As feed prices and drought drive up production costs for beef on one end, competition from chicken is ruffling feathers on the other. #### **Why the fowl play?** If there’s one thing today that unites Americans across every demographic, it’s chicken. - Four of Grubhub’s 10 [bestselling](https://about.grubhub.com/news/grubhub-reveals-countrys-top-food-ordering-trends-in-2022-delivered-report-a-year-of-takeout-wrapped-in-layers-of-comfort/) dishes in 2022 were chicken. One was beef. - The average Chick-fil-A store brings in $6.8m in annual revenue, compared to McDonald’s $3.6m, and Popeyes has 3x’d sales in five years. **BTW:** While cows and chickens have long had beef, they may soon share a common enemy in cleaner, greener, lab-grown meats — cultivated meat companies [raised $896m](https://gfi.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/2022-Cultivated-Meat-State-of-the-Industry-Report.pdf) in 2022, and regulators [are keeping](https://apnews.com/article/cultivated-meat-lab-grown-cell-based-a88ab8e0241712b501aa191cdbf6b39a) the momentum going. Topics: [Food](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/tag/food) ## Follow us on social media prev next - ![Holy smokes, there may actually be a limit to Texans’ love of barbecue](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1244337807-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Texas-BBQ_20230928210924.webp) ### Holy smokes, there may actually be a limit to Texans’ love of barbecue - ![Think your industry is weird? Get a load of the beaded ice cream business](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/908447747-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-dippindots_20231002233115.webp) ### Think your industry is weird? Get a load of the beaded ice cream business - ![When did the packaged food aisle get so cool?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/2070592382-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Packaging_20231003215516.webp) ### When did the packaged food aisle get so cool? - ![The cereal industry’s forecast has no added sugar](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/258270469-19-News-Brief_2023-09-24T200813.124Z.webp) ### The cereal industry’s forecast has no added sugar - ![One chip, several problems](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/161461033-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-paqui_20230914213352.webp) ### One chip, several problems - ![The shroom boom is coming to the candy aisle](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1460885417-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Mushrooms_20230816224353-1.webp) ### The shroom boom is coming to the candy aisle - ![A Pop-Tarts and Crocs partnership exists because we’re all total suckers](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/1897903693-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-croc-tarts_20230814231514.webp) ### A Pop-Tarts and Crocs partnership exists because we’re all total suckers - ![L’Eggo my… booze in a jar?](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/858195133-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Eggo_20230822212534.webp) ### L’Eggo my… booze in a jar? - ![Investors in search of greener pastures look to lab-grown meat](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/62473941-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-Beyond_Meat_stock_20230806234941.webp) ### Investors in search of greener pastures look to lab-grown meat - ![Hot dogs are making their stand](https://hs-sbup.thehustle.co/hubfs/The%20Hustle%20News/Assets/Images/765967681-httpsthdaily.s3.us-west-1.amazonaws.comfinal_size-hot_dog_20230711001828.webp) ### Hot dogs are making their stand Pop up for Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Subscribe to The Hustle Daily Newsletter Get the 5-minute news brief keeping 2.5M+ innovators in the loop. 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