August 31, 2009
Philippine beef imports down 29 percent in July
Total beef and carabeef imports into the Philippines during July fell 29 percent compared with July 2008, despite a three-percent rise on June to 7,094 tonnes swt.
The drop was attributed mainly to subdued volumes from India, Brazil, Canada and the US, despite rises in volumes from Australia and New Zealand.
Imports of Indian carabeef and Brazilian beef in July fell 42 percent and three percent on a year ago, respectively, as demand for manufacturing product remained soft.
Reportedly, Filipino households continued switching to cheaper alternative proteins in the face of high food prices and the subdued economic conditions. The volume of Canadian beef also slumped, by 72 percent compared with July 2008. US beef volumes dropped by 30 percent in July as high prices combined with the weakening peso against the US dollar impacted orders.
During the seven months to July, Philippines imported 32-percent less beef compared with the same period last year, totalling 50,513 tonnes swt. Falls were witnessed across imports from all suppliers, ranging between -four percent (Australia) and -78 percent (Canada).
