November 2, 2010
Cattle prices in Chile soar on global beef demand
Prices for calves in Chile have almost tripled to over US$3 per kilogramme, which represents a 90% increase over a year ago, after a decade of stalled prices.
Manuel Bitsch, Chile's Agriculture Ministry regional representative, said that prices for finished cattle could keep increasing the recovering values of the first half of the nineties, particularly during the calves' sales season from March to June.
"There is strong world demand for beef as some of the main Asian markets recover from the recession, including Russia, which has seen imports soar", he said.
Bitsch added that world supply remains stalled because of the falling prices of the last four years plus the fact that farmers are now retaining cows and heifers.
"Brazil, the world's leading exporter has no further expansion capacity because of strong demand from the domestic market. In Argentina the cattle herd has diminished dramatically because of government policies and Paraguay has been supplying its neighbours by covering the blanks," he said.
More specifically in Punta Arenas, a new abattoir has been certified and export prospects are very good. "They are studying market conditions, cattle quality, cattle availability and the possible evolution of prices with its impact on consumers", Bitsch said.
Bitsch also mentioned that imported beef in the Punta Arenas Free trade zone has accessible prices because of the weakened US dollar and strong Chilean peso.
Most of Punta Arenas lambs are shipped to markets in the capital of Santiago and other rich cities of the country or exported to the European Union (EU) for which Magallanes region has a specific certification.
