Question

Meat consumption in the United States can be broken into three categories: red meat, poultry, and fish. If fish makes up 4% less than one-quarter of poultry consumption, and red meat consumption is 18.2% higher than poultry consumption, what are the percentages of meat consumption? Round your answers to two decimal places.

Answer 1

The percentages of meat consumption in the United States are approximately: poultry = 41.78%, fish = 6.45%, and red meat = 59.98%.

Step-by-step explanation:

Let's solve the problem step-by-step:

1. Let's assume poultry consumption is x%.
2. According to the given information, fish consumption is 4% less than one-quarter of poultry consumption. One-quarter of poultry consumption is x/4%. So, fish consumption is (x/4)% - 4% = (x/4)% - 0.04x%.
3. Red meat consumption is 18.2% higher than poultry consumption. So, red meat consumption is x% + 18.2% = x% + 0.182x%.
4. The total meat consumption is the sum of the three categories: poultry, fish, and red meat. Therefore, poultry + fish + red meat = x% + (x/4)% - 0.04x% + x% + 0.182x% = 2.182x% + (x/4)% - 0.04x%.

Simplifying the expression above:

2.182x% + (x/4)% - 0.04x% = 2.182x% + (1/4)x% - 0.04x% = (2.182 + 0.25 - 0.04)x% = 2.392x%.

Since the total meat consumption is 100%, we have:

2.392x% = 100%

Solving for x:

x = 100% / 2.392 = 41.78% (rounded to two decimal places).

Therefore, the percentages of meat consumption are: poultry = 41.78%, fish = (41.78/4)% - 4% = 10.45% - 4% = 6.45%, and red meat = 41.78% + 18.2% = 59.98% (rounded to two decimal places).