Georgians Eat Far Less Meat than Their Neighbors

The FINANCIAL — On supra tables across Georgia, whether for birthdays, weddings, or other special occasions, you’re bound to find plates of mtsvadi, kebabs, or other meat-based dishes.Eating khinkali could even be the Georgian national sport.  

It’s quite a surprise, then, that the average Georgian doesn’t actually take part in much meat or poultry in their day-to-day lives.  In a 2010 poll conducted by Georgian Opinion Research Business International, far fewer Georgians reported eating meat daily than their Caucasian and East Central Asian neighbors.  In fact, more than 70% of Georgians polled said they ate meat once a week or less frequently.

Of those countries polled, Kazakhstan was the most carnivorous; more than half of those polled reported eating meat daily, while only 13% reported eating it once a week or less.Russia and Belarus were close behind with only around 15% in either country eating meat that infrequently. Both of Georgia’s Caucasian neighbors, along with Moldova, reported less than a 20% rate of daily meat-eating.

Within Georgia, those living in the villages eat meat the least.  In fact, more than 80% of those living outside Tbilisi and the regional capitals say they eat meat once a week or less.  Tbilisi residents eat more, but still don’t compare to the populations of any of the other countries in the poll. Similar trends are seen in other countries as well; city residents tend to eat more meat.

Diet Attitudes — Many things could affect a person’s eating habits.  The price of meat is quite high relative to other basic foods in Georgia, so perhaps many more people would eat meat daily if they could afford it. There isalsosure to be some cultural influence, some national and regional cuisines call for more meat than others.  However, in the same poll, GORBI asked respondents about many of their attitudes toward healthy living and health prevention.  In particular, they were asked whether “a healthy diet” or “eating a lot of meat” were important for their health. 

Here we find an additional possible explanation for these habits, as Georgians are the least likely of those polled to call eating a lot of meat important for health. They’re also the most likely to say “a healthy diet” is important. Theseattitudes align quite nicely with meat consumption on a country level.  it seems that knowing what constitutes a good diet has encouraged less meat-eating in Georgians and other Caucasians.

This study, “Health in Times of Transition: Trends in Population Health and Health Policies in CIS countries,”was conducted in 2010 by Georgian Opinion Research Business International, and consisted of 8 nationwide polls totaling 16200 respondents. The error margins for studies of this kind are +- 3.5% at a 95% confidence interval.