According to ERS's 2010 food availability data, the per capita
supply of chicken in the United States exceeded that of beef for
the first time. In 2010, 58 pounds of chicken per person on a
boneless, edible basis were available for Americans to eat,
compared to 56.7 pounds of beef. Chicken began its upward climb in
the 1940s, overtaking pork in 1996 as the second most consumed
meat. Since 1970, U.S. chicken availability per person has more
than doubled. Chicken's lower price relative to beef and pork, the
wide variety of convenient chicken products marketed, and health
concerns related to fat, saturated fat, and cholesterol have all
played a role in chicken's growing popularity. This chart appears
in "U.S. Per Capita Availability of Chicken Surpasses That of Beef"
in the September 2012 issue of ERS's Amber
Waves magazine.