What were the primary reasons for different livestock consumption habits of countries and cultures?

Whilst visiting a friend in Germany recently he told me that the prevalence of pork in the German diet was because the winters often killed cattle and beef was not readily available.

I began to think about the issue on a much deeper (but uniformed level) and wondered what the primary reasons were for particular meat consumption in regions.

Examples

• Beef in the UK/USA


• Pork in Germanic Countries


• Herring in Scandinavia


• Goat in Arabic countries


• Lamb in South East Asia


• Tofu or Soy based products in Far Asia


• Mixed chicken and seafood in Romance-speaking countries

Is there a deep historical reasoning for the prevalence of one product over another?