September 3, 2009

Argentina - the world's leading beef exporter for five decades - will have to reduce red-meat consumption by almost a third in the next two years because of a looming cattle shortage, said Hugo Biolcati, head of the Argentine Rural Society.

Consumption by Argentines will drop to 50 kilograms (154 pounds) per person in 2011 from 70 kilograms this year, the farm leader said. The shortage also means there won't be enough to export, Biolcati said.

Biolcati said Argentina will end up without enough production for the domestic market.

The worst drought in a century is drying up pastures and crops in 80 percent of the Argentine Pampas, according to Eduardo Sierra, a climatologist for the Buenos Aires Cereals Exchange. The drought has forced ranchers to let livestock die in the fields at a time when birth rates are declining.

Cattle slaughtering rose to a record 1.1 million heads in July as ranchers sold off their herds.

More than half of all cattle slaughtered were breeding stock, indicating the herd may shrink further, said Miguel Schiariti, author of the chamber's report. The sell-off is "unsustainable" he wrote in the report.

Argentine farmers and ranchers are halting cattle and grain sales to protest government taxes and restrictions on exports. The one-week action will run through September 4.

Argentina's government began restricting beef exports in 2006 to boost more affordable beef in the domestic market.