Cattle Slaughter Rates Higher in Chile

CHILE – A dry forage season has preceded higher cattle slaughter through the first quarter of 2014, the Ministry of Agriculture (ODEPA) has announced.
calendar icon 28 March 2014
clock icon 1 minute read

In its March Outlook ODEPA reported a 10 per cent increase in heifer slaughter.

However, a production spike has led to depressed cattle prices, currently at peso992 per kilo – a 2.2 per cent drop on February 2013’s price above peso1,000/kilo.

This took prime beef heifers to over a fifth of the beef supply with steers growing four per cent.

Total beef production for January came in at 18,031 tons, a 7.4 per cent increase on January 2013 – 841 tons more than the monthly average.

Trade officials have reported a slide in beef exports while imports have risen accordingly.

ODEPA reported a 32.3 per cent export volume decline as above average imports were recorded for in January and February.

Main suppliers remain neighbours Brazil (44.4 per cent), Paraguay (24.4 per cent) and Argentina (19.8 per cent), although a change in buyers was seen with Cosa Rica and South Korea buying more beef that Germany and France.

Cuba remained Chile’s premier beef buyer.

Michael Priestley

 

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