In the third quarter of 2009, 1.9 million tonnes of meat were commercially produced in Germany, which is 1.8 per cent more than in the third quarter of 2008.

The rise was characterised by a marked increase in the production of poultry meat. The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reports that the production of poultry meat rose by five per cent or 15,700 tonnes to a total of 330,200 tonnes in the months of July to September 2009 compared with the same period of 2008.

The production of poultry meat reached a new all-time high and accounted for 17.3 per cent of total commercial meat production.