Although ancient material conditions were scarce, it was not impossible for ordinary people to eat meat. This should be divided into different periods and regions.

In the pre-Qin period, the overall productivity of slave society in Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties was low, and the total social grain output was far from enough to meet people's daily consumption. People often starve to death, let alone eat meat. Ordinary people in the same class are not qualified to eat meat, only nobles such as princes are qualified to eat meat. Zhou Li clearly stated that meat resources should be distributed according to social class. Beef can only be enjoyed by Zhou Wang, and mutton can only be enjoyed by the prince. The following doctors can only relieve their greed through pigs and dogs. It is almost impossible to eat meat at the level of civilians.

In the Song Dynasty, with the arrival of the commercial society, the surplus products of the society were exchanged, the market resources were greatly enriched, and the people also got the right to eat meat. "Water Margin" is not an exaggeration, but ordinary people can eat beef from cultivated land every meal, and pork and chicken have become ordinary consumer goods on the table of ordinary people. According to relevant historical records, Kaifeng, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, has farms and slaughterhouses specializing in raising chickens, ducks and pigs, with a daily supply of tens of thousands, which can meet the meat demand of hundreds of thousands of people in the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty.

The time when ancient materials were really rich was the Ming and Qing Dynasties. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, high-yield crops were introduced from the west to the east, which led to a sharp increase in population and more frequent exchanges in China. In the prosperous period of Kanggan, the agricultural output of China reached the highest level in the ancient feudal dynasty, and the urbanization process reached the highest level in history. Great changes have taken place in urban catering industry. People pay more attention to the composition and taste of food. Food culture was born in the late Qing dynasty, and the traditional "eight major cuisines" were born. Meat has become an edible food for ordinary people in towns.

So in ancient times, it was the environment of the times that played a decisive role in the desire of ordinary people to eat meat. In the era of abundant food and prosperity, eating meat is no longer a luxury for ordinary people. In times of famine or war, it is difficult to eat enough food to survive.

Ancient carnivores are not only closely related to the times, but also closely related to the local area.

Just as people living in remote mountainous areas and forests can hunt prey to meet the demand for meat, or people living near rivers and streams in Lake Hu Hai can catch seafood and shrimp to meet the demand for meat. This is a way for ancient people to get meat.