January 21, 2010

Uruguay's 2009 beef exports shows on-year increase

Uruguay exported 390,000 tonnes of beef in 2009, up almost 4% from a year earlier.

Beef exports last year were valued at US$970 million, down from US$1.222 billion in 2008, according to the national beef institute Inac. Russia was the leading buyer of Uruguayan beef last year, importing 104,040 tonnes, followed by the European Union with 98,573 tonnes.

Uruguay slaughtered 2.3 million cattle last year, a 5% increase on the year, according to Inac. Severe drought last year spurred some farmers to send more animals to market rather that keep them on dry fields.

Uruguay is the world's seventh-largest beef exporter.