The largest meat categories
Poultry and livestock sit on levee out of floodwaters - NARA - 285965.jpg. Original file: [Poultry and livestock sit on levee out of floodwaters - NARA - 285965.jpg](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3APoultry_and_livestock_sit_on_levee_out_of_floodwaters_-_NARA_-_285965.jpg). Creator: Unknown author Unknown author or not provided. License: Public domain (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3APoultry%20and%20livestock%20sit%20on%20levee%20out%20of%20floodwaters%20-%20NARA%20-%20285965.jpg). Attribution: Unknown author Unknown author or not provided. Downloaded from the verified Commons file page; unaltered image. Checked 2026-10-25.
The answer depends on what “popularity” means: meat produced, amount eaten, or number of servings. FAO data for 2023 show poultry meat as the largest global category by production, followed by pig meat and bovine meat. This is a ranking by production weight, not a universal ranking of people’s preferences.
. Creator: Unknown author Unknown author or not provided. License: Public domain (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3APoultry%20and%20livestock%20sit%20on%20levee%20out%20of%20floodwaters%20-%20NARA%20-%20285965.jpg). Attribution: Unknown author Unknown author or not provided. Downloaded from the verified Commons file page; unaltered image. Checked 2026-10-25.](https://xtotam-watt-media-442809139467.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/facts/0dce50c8-79d0-4029-b014-9f6fd74c6d68/media/582a2c41af95b261896ce74ebae99ee6639161392f8c465de0fc07ad504b405b/poultry.jpg)
. Creator: Presixlla MOON. License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). Attribution: Presixlla MOON. Downloaded from the verified Commons file page; unaltered image. Checked 2026-10-25.](https://xtotam-watt-media-442809139467.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/facts/0dce50c8-79d0-4029-b014-9f6fd74c6d68/media/dd4bf9c093f404c47736529eb60e857e314f9c569e5520cd2c5e7ea8d8eeb75b/pork.jpg)
. Creator: Tom Corser. License: CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0). Attribution: Tom Corser. Downloaded from the verified Commons file page; unaltered image. Checked 2026-10-25.](https://xtotam-watt-media-442809139467.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/facts/0dce50c8-79d0-4029-b014-9f6fd74c6d68/media/a43ec1789774659c8206fbe5c660b9a232c25fa3446d362e0ac0064889d22e9d/beef-cattle.jpg)