Brazil: Livestock and Products Semi-annual

In 2022, the Brazilian bovine sector is expected to expand its cattle production by 2.5 percent, driven by global demand, elevated beef prices, and the recovery phase that the sector is going through. Nevertheless, in 2022, increasing production costs, especially feed prices, general inflation, and unstable weather will pose serious challenges to cattle ranchers. Tracking with higher slaughter rates, Post forecasts increase in beef production motivated by higher prices and strong global demand. In 2022, Post forecasts beef exports to increase by 12 percent. As for swine, in 2022, Post forecasts swine production to increase by 1.8 percent, reaching 45.3 million tons (CWE). Despite the strong incentives for swine and pork production, challenges are expected: unstable and unfavorable weather conditions, elevated production costs and sanitary risks. In 2022, Post projects a 2.9 percent growth in pork exports, in part driven by China, but also by new importing markets.