July 31, 2008

Brazil forecast beef exports to grow by one-third by 2017

Brazil, the world's top exporter of beef, expects shipments to grow nearly one-third by 2017 to reach 2.9 million tonnes, said private agricultural consultants AgraFNP on Tuesday (July 29).

The optimistic prediction is made on the observation that rival exporters Australia, US and Argentina are limited by land scarcity and dry weather.

Brazilian cattle should increase to 183 million heads in 2017, up from 170 million currently due to improved nutrition and breeds, the consultancy said.

AgraFNP added that production will become more land-efficient, with current total grazing land of 190 million hectares likely to fall by 17 million hectares by 2017, as more pasture goes to crop production to satisfy the rising demand for food.

However, the consultancy also estimated world beef production to grow by 250,000 to 300,000 tonnes by 2017, an increase which Brazil is unlikely to absorb alone. This will lead to prices increasing by 20 percent in five to 10 years' time, said AgraFNP.