Iffa meat fair
More trainees in the butcher trade
Meat no longer belongs as a matter of course on the menu as a few years ago. But the downward trend initially seems to stop. The craft also records more interest again.
For the first time in around 20 years, more young people in Germany decided to train in meat craft. The number of prospective butchers rose by 5.4 percent to 2,434 in 2024 compared to the previous year, as reported by the German Fleischer Association in the run-up to the IFFA trade fair (May 3 to May 8, 2025) in Frankfurt. The apprenticeship on the sales counter also seems to have become more attractive. Here the number of young professionals even rose by almost 16 percent to 2,352.
The association explains that young people from abroad are enthusiastic about the professions for the professions, the development, which is primarily observed in southern Germany. With 1,033 people, almost half of the prospective sellers have no German passport. In addition, you benefit from the weakness of other apprenticeships, for example in construction.
At the same time, the number of craftsmanship meat companies has declined again. 16,381 Operational facilities of 9,872 self -employed master companies mean a slower decline of 2.9 percent. The number of employees in the industry fell by 2.4 percent to around 130,000 people last year.
Despite the business tasks, sales rose by around 2 percent and are now around 2 million euros per company. According to the Federal Statistical Office, meat production in Germany had increased again for the first time since 2016. According to the DFV, private demand also increased slightly for the first time in years, by 0.8 percent to 53.2 kilograms a year.
dpa
Source: Stern
