76 percent of the beef imported by China comes from Mercosur
According to data from Chinese customs, in July 294,796 tons of beef entered that country, of which 224,366 tons came from Mercosur. The 201,705 tons of frozen boneless meat that arrived from the South American countries did so at an average value of 5,283 USD/ton, while 25,433 tons arrived from the countries of Oceania at an average of 6,793 USD/ton and 10,227 tons from the United States at $8,243/ton.
The main supplier of frozen boneless meat is, by far, Brazil. While Uruguay predominates in the case of frozen meat with bone and giblets and Australia in chilled meat.
In Uruguay, during the last month, 44 thousand tons of beef were sold abroad, 19% more year-on-year, this being the first increase compared to the same month of the previous year after 13 consecutive falls.
Even so, in the accumulated eight months, Uruguayan exports amount to 311,000 tons of carcass weight, which are 16% lower than what was shipped in the same period of 2022, mainly explained by lower purchases from China (-27%) and Israel. (-40%), partially offset by increases in the US (17%) and Chile (9%).
Beef production in Brazil could grow by 8% in 2023. This estimate comes from the aggregate of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Brazil who projected that beef production in Brazil will end 2023 with a volume of 11, 16 million tons per carcass equivalent, which represents a growth of 8% compared to last year.
Likewise, by 2024 meat production could increase a little more and reach 11.38 million tons, due to increased slaughter, better economic conditions for local consumers and strong external demand, especially from China.
"Another element that favors the increase in Brazilian beef production is that the country's main competitors, such as the United States, the European Union, Argentina and Uruguay, are expected to reduce production by 2023 or with a growth forecast lower than 1%", the USDA said in a report.
In Australia, beef cattle prices have declined significantly this year following record highs reached in 2022. However, the reduction in retail price is not yet fully reflected. When comparing the last quarter with the same period last year, it is observed that sales in stores registered a growth of 7.1% in volume with an average decrease in the retail price of 4.9%, demonstrating that the fall in product prices cattle has begun to impact the price paid at the cash register, although the full transfer will require more time.
Central to the Aussie Meat Academy are influential food industry professionals who are passionate...
“Looking at the United Kingdom alone, there are 3.9m Muslims and our research suggests that...
A record-breaking Gulfood attendance set the tone for the year, with tradeshows and exhibitions b...
