Top 20 Countries That Eat the Most and Least Calories Per Person Each Day

How much does the average person eat in a day? There are many factors that influence average calorie consumption, including where a person lives. On average, Western countries eat more calories daily, with Belgium, the United States, and Ireland taking the lead. Do the countries that eat the most correlate with countries that have the best food? It is true that Belgium is famous for its decadent cheese, mussels, waffles, and chocolate! “Frites” (fries) are another beloved Belgian delicacy. In fact, Belgians were urged to eat more fries during coronavirus lockdowns to help struggling potato growers, and many happily obliged. This infographic from How To Cook Recipes explores calorie consumption around the world:

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Here are the top 15 countries that eat the most calories per capita daily:

  1. Belgium: 3,768 calories per day
  2. United States: 3,766 calories per day
  3. Ireland: 3,717 calories per day
  4. Austria: 3,692 calories per day
  5. Luxembourg: 3,670 calories per day
  6. Iceland: 3,628 calories per day
  7. France: 3,558 calories per day
  8. Germany: 3,556 calories per day
  9. Turkey: 3,540 calories per day
  10. Poland: 3,525 calories per day
  11. Romania: 3,525 calories per day
  12. Italy: 3,522 calories per day
  13. Israel: 3,509 calories per day
  14. Portugal: 3,492 calories per day
  15. Canada: 3,492 calories per day

 

Which country has the least amount of food? Here are the top 15 countries that eat the fewest calories per capita daily:

  1. Ethiopia: 1,557 calories per day
  2. Central African Republic: 1,758 calories per day
  3. Madagascar: 1,903 calories per day
  4. Afghanistan: 2,000 calories per day
  5. Zambia: 2,013 calories per day
  6. North Korea: 2,032 calories per day
  7. Bahamas: 2,043 calories per day
  8. Yemen: 2,063 calories per day
  9. Chad: 2,090 calories per day
  10. Tajikistan: 2,104 calories per day
  11. Kenya: 2,124 calories per day
  12. Liberia: 2,132 calories per day
  13. Timor: 2,140 calories per day
  14. Uganda: 2,144 calories per day
  15. Haiti: 2,164 calories per day

 

The contrast between the calories consumed in these countries and in the countries that eat the most calories daily is staggering. This information is invaluable for helping to guide anti-poverty efforts by highlighting where food insecurity is the most prevalent in the world.

Do countries that eat the most also have the highest obesity rates? Not necessarily. Here are the 15 countries with the highest obesity rates, which reveal that global obesity rates are influenced by many other factors besides average calorie intake:

  1. Nauru: 61% of adults are obese
  2. Cook Islands: 55.9% of adults are obese
  3. Palau: 55.3% of adults are obese
  4. Marshall Islands: 52.9% of adults are obese
  5. Tuvalu: 51.6% of adults are obese
  6. Niue: 50% of adults are obese
  7. Tonga: 48.2% of adults are obese
  8. Samoa: 47.3% of adults are obese
  9. Kiribati: 46.0% of adults are obese
  10. Federal States of Micronesia: 45.8% of adults are obese
  11. Kuwait: 37.9% of adults are obese
  12. United States of America: 36.2% of adults are obese
  13. Jordan: 35.5% of adults are obese
  14. Saudi Arabia: 35.4% of adults are obese
  15. Qatar: 35.1% of adults are obese

 

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This page was last updated by Megan Miller