tion. Large feedlot operations for beef are concentrated in the Great Plains, while broiler production is heavily concen­trated in the Southeast. In the 1980s hog production shifted from the Midwest to large operations in the Southeast (Figure 2-14; Welsh et al., 2003). At the same time, dairy production expanded in Western states away from the Northeast and Upper Midwest (McBride, 1997). Canada has seen similar geographic concentrations of livestock production with hog production shifting from Quebec and Ontario to the west, particularly Manitoba, while cattle production has become concentrated in Alberta (USDA-FAS, 1996).

2.5.1 Trends in output and productivity since 1945
Four groups of animals produce over 90% of Europe's meat and dairy products; cattle for milk, beef and veal, pigs for meat, poultry for meat and eggs, and sheep and goats for meat, milk and wool. Meat, dairy products and eggs ac­count for over one-third of the total value of agricultural production in Europe. Beef sales declined during the BSE crisis from 1996 to 2001 but have now begun to recover (Morgan, 2001; USDA-FAS, 2005). Pig and poultry meat consumption increased due to the BSE-induced dip in beef demand, but have increased even further since the 1990s due to greater competitiveness with other meat production, partly as a result of CAP reforms that made cheaper cere­als available for animal feed. Sheep meat production and consumption declined during the 2001 UK foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, but have now almost recovered (Eurostat Agriculture, 2007a).
     In response to growing demand from a larger and richer population, production of all livestock increased very rap­idly in the EU-15 from 1961 to 2000, while production of meat and dairy products has fallen in CEE from 1990, mainly as a result of the transition from a centrally planned to a market economy. However in Hungary, Slovenia, Croa­tia and Romania production has either remained stable or increased slightly from 1993 to 2004 (EU, 2004). Europe (EU-25) produces over three times as much meat per head of human population as the world average of 36 kg per capita (FAOSTAT, 2007).

     This productivity has led to over-production. Europe is more than self-sufficient in meat, with a current net balance of around 105% for all meats (Eurostat Agriculture, 2007a). As a result of rigorous CAP reforms in the 1990s, European production of beef and veal has fallen rapidly from around 50% over-production (EU-15) in the 1990s to around 96% self-sufficiency in 2004. Beef and veal consumption has risen in the past 4 years, with the European production deficit be­ing made up by imports of around 250,000 tonnes per year from South America. Pig meat is still being over-produced in EU-25 by about 8%, making the EU-25 a net exporter of pig meat products, mainly to Russia and Japan.
     The EU is a net importer of sheep meat (EU-25 is only 78% self-sufficient in sheep and goat meat) and dairy prod­ucts, mostly from New Zealand and also imports large quantities of poultry meat from Brazil and Thailand, where production costs are much lower than in Europe. Somewhat perversely the EU also exports large quantities of poultry meat and offal to Russia and the Ukraine and parts of the Middle East (Eurostat Agriculture, 2007b).
     North America accounts for 16% of the world's total number of beef cows, 8% of the world's pig crop, nearly one-third of the world's poultry meat production and nearly 15% of the world's milk (Farm Foundation, 2004; Adcock et al., 2006). In the swine sector, productivity in breeding herds has increased significantly, with 3.2 million fewer sows in 2004 than in 1980 producing roughly the same amount of pigs. The US and Canada have been able to increase milk output 19% (Figure 2-15) and 6% respectively, even with fewer cows, due to significant improvements in milk pro­ductivity related to improved genetics (Farm Foundation, 2004). In the US the value of livestock production increased nearly by a factor of eight between 1948 and 2005, while the production of red meat increased nearly 50% from 1963 to 2006 (even though lamb and mutton production has de­clined sharply due to cheaper imports). Poultry production has also significantly increased.
     In Canada, pig slaughter has nearly tripled since 1976, while cattle slaughter declined and then started to increase in the last 15 years, due to the opening of new processing