The nation that gave the world bratwurst and hot dogs is cutting back on its favorite pork sausages and larding up plates with more veggie concoctions instead.
Germans last year consumed the smallest amount of pig meat since at least 2005, and the drop will continue in 2017, according to Agriculture Market Information Co. in Bonn. In Europe's largest hog-producing and pork-eating nation, ham and sausage demand has dropped for at least three straight years.
Pork still accounts for more than half the meat eaten in the continent's top economy, but it's losing market share to poultry and beef and competing more with vegetarian options at shops and restaurants. The shift reflects changing German attitudes about healthier diets and climate-friendly, sustainable food production. There's also been an influx of refugees who don't eat pork.