Pork Is Technically Red Meat Because Of Myoglobin

The world loves pork—and that’s not just a guess.

From a culinary perspective, pork is often treated as white meat because it is lighter in color when cooked.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports that pork accounts for 36% of global meat consumption, surpassing poultry (33%) and beef (24%), Georgina Jedikovska wrote for Chowhound.

While many consider pork a white meat, science says otherwise.

The misconception largely stems from the National Pork Board’s 1987 marketing campaign, "Pork. The Other White Meat," which aimed to boost pork sales. But in reality, pork is classified as red meat due to its myoglobin content.

Myoglobin is a protein responsible for the red color of meat.

Pork contains about 0.2% myoglobin—enough to categorize it as red meat, though less than beef, which has the highest myoglobin content. When exposed to oxygen, myoglobin turns into oxymyoglobin, giving meat its bright red hue.

Because pork contains significantly more myoglobin than chicken or fish, it falls into the same category as beef, lamb, and goat.

Additionally, since pigs are classified as livestock, the USDA designates pork as red meat.

However, from a culinary perspective, pork is often treated as white meat because it is lighter in color when cooked. This distinction—along with decades of marketing—has contributed to ongoing confusion over pork’s classification.