The Brazilian Government and meat producers have been investing in opening new markets and diversifying destinations for national exports. According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, in the last 15 months, the country has celebrated the approval of 105 new markets for the products, in 50 countries.
“We are in a frantic search for opening new markets. Last year, we had a record opening of 78 new markets and, now, we have achieved the milestone of 105 markets accumulated from last year until April this year,” emphasizes the Secretary of Commerce and International Relations of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Roberto Perosa.
The new authorizations pave the way to increase shipment volumes and cause changes to the list of main buyers of Brazilian meats. “In Southeast Asia, we had an increase in sales volume, there were authorizations for new export plans to Russia, and the possibility of more exports to Chile. In short, there are several actions being taken to create even more opportunities for Brazilian products,” says Perosa.
In the first two months of this year, Brazilian beef and pork registered record sales, according to a survey by Datagro consultancy, based on data from the Secretariat of Foreign Trade (Secex/MDIC).
The data show that the Middle East is becoming an important destination for Brazilian products. In beef exports, the United Arab Emirates moved from sixth to third place among buyers, with 7.2% of the total, behind only China (53.3%) and the USA (8.2%). In absolute numbers, the country bought 26.1 thousand tons out of a total of 362.5 thousand.
The Datagro survey also shows that the Philippines, Japan, and South Korea more than doubled their pork imports compared to the same period in 2023. The Philippines moved from fifth to second place in the ranking, with 12.3% of the 168.2 thousand tons traded, amid an outbreak of African swine fever that restricted the local supply.
The country was only behind China, which lost almost 20 percentage points in participation, from 46.8% of the total in 2023 to 27.4% in the first two months of 2024.
Japanese purchases of Brazilian pork products grew by 136.4% and the country moved to sixth place, with 5.8% of the total. South Korea ranked eighth among buyers this year, with a 238.2% increase in purchases.
Datagro highlights that Brazil has managed to expand its sales horizons not only in the mentioned products but also in the flagship of national agribusiness, soybeans. And, with this diversification, it reduced the dependence on few buyers.
The consultancy also states that this is a positive picture for the country, as it denotes “resilience, competitiveness, and the growing diversification of destinations”.