Paraguay: Livestock and Products Annual

Paraguayan beef exports in 2023 are forecast to decline to 390,000 tons carcass weight equivalent, the second drop in a row thanks to declining cattle production. The country is suffering from the third consecutive year of La Niña conditions, which leads to dry weather in most regions. Paraguayan slaughter numbers peaked in 2021 and are forecast to drop in 2022 and 2023, reducing the beef supply. Poor pasture conditions have accelerated investment in feedlots and roughly 25 percent of the slaughter is now coming from cattle finished in confined feeding operations. This trend is expected to continue in coming years.