Brazilian poultry reaches record production levels in 2011

Brazil's poultry industry set new records in 2011 for production, consumption and exports, and saw Brazilians' per capita consumption of poultry surpass Americans' for the first time, according to year-end figures released Monday by Brazil's poultry processors and exporters association, Ubabef, during a press conference in Sao Paulo. Brazil produced 13.058 million metric tons of poultry in 2011, up 6.77 percent from 2010, placing Brazil third in global production. Seventy percent of Brazil's poultry was sold domestically in 2011, the rest exported. “With this 2011 performance, Brazil has further closed the gap that separates us from China, the No. 2 producer behind the U.S.,” said Francisco Turra, Ubabef president. The association believes Brazil can surpass China in poultry production in 2012. Poultry exports totaled 3.943 million metric tons by volume, up 3.2 percent from 2010, while sales receipts reached US$8.2 billion in 2011, up 21.2 percent from 2010 export revenue. Slight growth in 2012 Ubabef has forecasted a conservative 2 percent growth rate for poultry exports by volume for 2012, due in part to uncertainties with the European economy and a poor return from the first of Brazil's two corn harvests. Exports could grow more rapidly this year if Russia reopens its borders to more Brazilian processors, and if China's sanitation authority approves more Brazilian plants for export. Brazil's second annual corn crop also has a history of outperforming the first, Turra said. Infrastructure investment at ports along Brazil's southern coast, as well as improving highways and railways to those ports, will be key points in 2012 where Ubabef and the poultry industry try to apply pressure for public investment. The association delivered a petition with 70 infrastructure proposals to Brazil's president and Congressional leaders in 2011. Export growth is fairly limited for poultry at the industry's main ports, like Santa Catarina's Port of Itajai (Brazil's main port for frozen poultry exports), which currently has no railway points and dilapidated highway connections. Ubabef officials said the poultry industry doesn't have the financial means to build its own transport solutions, but believes they're getting through to Brasilia on the necessity of port growth for meat exporters. Source: www.meatingplace.com - January 10, 2012