Argentine beef exports have grown interannually but demand from China is 20% lower than in July and decreasing, with a marked downward trend in prices, according to a report from the Argentine Beef Exporters (ABC) Consortium in Buenos Aires.

In the first 8 months of 2022, shipments of beef grew 9.4% compared to the same period of 2021 and almost 20% in August compared to the same month last year, but fell 5% from July, the study also revealed.

On the other hand, shipments to China, Argentine beef’s main destination, fell by 20% compared to July. The Argentine Government allowed 15% more exports, which might result in a positive impact at the end of this month.

“In relation to August 2021, the volumes exported are 19.9% higher; while the value obtained has been 32.3% higher. The accumulated for the first 8 months of 2022 reveals that foreign sales of refrigerated and frozen beef were for 417.3 thousand tons product weight; for a value of approximately US$2450 million. Compared to the first 8 months of 2021, the volumes exported are 9.4% higher; while the value obtained has been 43.7% higher,” ABC Chief Mario Ravettino said.

Shipments of refrigerated and frozen beef in August reached a volume of around 56.7 thousand tons of product weight, with a value of around US$329.2 million. Compared to July, volumes shipped showed a 5% decrease, while the value obtained fell by 4.7%.

The average export price of chilled and frozen beef was 0.3% higher than in July, and 10.4% above the average for the same period of 2021.

 

Mercopress

Growing concerns over the survival of small abattoirs and farm supply companies have prompted the National Sheep Association (NSA) to appeal to government for “meaningful” support.

The NSA points to the increasing dominance of large companies in agricultural markets which it says is leading to the end of small seed or livestock processing businesses, such as the recent closure of a 100-year-old abattoir in the north of England.

NSA chief executive Phil Stocker said: “Although newly announced energy support packages will have come as welcome relief for many, the government must realise the ongoing severity of the situation, especially within the small abattoir sector.

“During the period between 2019-2021, the sector has seen the closure of 14 abattoirs and already this year we have seen more added to that list.” Mr Stocker said the largest 24 meat processing plants control 85% of the throughput.

“As an industry, there is a desperate need to support small and medium-sized businesses to ensure that there is capacity and a service for rural locations at a time when interest in localising supply chains is growing.”

 

 

The Press and Journal

GABORONE, Sept 28 (Reuters) – Botswana has resumed exports of live cattle and beef from areas declared free of foot and mouth disease (FMD) but sales to Europe, which has tougher import restrictions, remain suspended, a senior government official told Reuters on Wednesday.

In August, Botswana suspended beef exports following an outbreak of foot and mouth disease in one of its disease control zones in the northeast of the southern African country.

Kefentse Motshegwa, acting director of Veterinary Services, said sales to the EU and Britain remain suspended with negotiations to reopen exports underway.

“Following an outbreak, there are specific processes to be implemented and arrangements that must be negotiated with EU before exports are resumed, and this process is ongoing,” Motshegwa said.

Reuters

Beleaguered plant-based food producer Beyond Meat has lost a second senior executive days after it suspended its chief operating officer.

Bernie Adcock will step down as chief supply chain officer at the end of the month “to pursue another opportunity”, the US company announced on Friday.

Adcock joined the California-based meat-alternatives supplier in 2021 after eight years as chief supply chain officer at meat processing giant Tyson Foods. He handed in his resignation last Tuesday, 20 September, an SEC filing states.

Beyond Meat said Adcock’s role will not be replaced and his responsibilities will be taken over by Jonathan Nelson, the company’s senior vice president of manufacturing operations.

 

By Jessica Broadbent / Just Food

Meat processor Tönnies has cut hundreds of jobs since June at two pig plants in its home market of Germany as slaughter numbers continue to “slump”.

Between 500 and 600 slaughtering and cutting positions have been eliminated across the sites in Sögel, Lower Saxony, and Weißenfels in the south of Saxony-Anhalt, a spokesperson for Tönnies confirmed, adding to a reduction in headcount at other facilities in the past two years.

Animals coming in for slaughter have dropped amid higher costs for farmers, leading to some exiting the trade altogether, Tönnies said. It was a similar story at Danish Crown, which announced 350 job cuts earlier this month at two abattoirs, citing “record-high costs” for energy and animal feed linked to the war in Ukraine. Like Germany, some pig farmers in Denmark are also shutting down production completely, Danish Crown said.

German politicians are also pushing for a general reduction in meat consumption due to environmental considerations and a national strategy to promote plant-based alternatives and organic farming.

“The entire industry is currently struggling with a slump in slaughter numbers. The reduction in animal husbandry pushed by some politicians is having a full impact. Many farmers have given up their farms and there is a shortage of animals,” Tönnies explained in a statement.

 

By Simon Harvey / Just Food

The EU-spec SPP has passed the £2 per kg mark, but the rate of increase is slowing and prices are still well below costs of production.

The SPP averaged 200.22p/kg in the week ending 16 September, up 0.3p from the previous week – the smallest increase since early March.

However, pig prices still fall short of the estimated cost of production, calculated at 223p per kg for August.

The sector is seeing surging energy and grain costs, as well as challenging post-Brexit staffing issues.

While the National Pig Association (NPA) welcomed the latest increase, it warned that the rate of progress was slowing.

“The SPP has finally hit £2/kg, rising by 0.3p to 200.22p/kg last week,” the body said.

“While the landmark is welcome, the pace of upward movement is slowing markedly.

“On average, prices remain below cost of production, estimated by AHDB at 221p/kg for August.”

 

 

by FarmingUK 

 

Just a few years ago, with a blockbuster initial public offering from Beyond Meat Inc and the unveiling of an Impossible Whopper at Burger King locations in the US, plant-based meats were ascendant.

Now, after once enjoying double-digit growth, sales in the plant-based meat category are not just flat, but declining, data from Information Resources Inc (IRI) showed.

That is due to possible saturation of the US market as new brands hit the shelves, Deloitte Consulting LLP said.

Sales of refrigerated meat alternatives at retailers are down 10.5 percent by volume for the 52 weeks ended on Sept. 4, IRI data show.

While higher prices are the top reason for the slide, it is not the only one, said Jonna Parker, a fresh food specialist at the market research company.

“Proteins that were cheaper on a price-per-pound basis did fare better,” Parker said, noting that semi-vegetarian shoppers that may have opted for an alt-product will now just go for the less expensive real thing. With inflation, consumers have become less willing to pay a premium for faux meat. Taste and health concerns are also playing a role, she said.

Deloitte believes the industry is suffering from a perception problem. In July, it surveyed 2,000 consumers and found a decline in the belief that plant-based meat is healthier and more environmentally sustainable than meat from animals.

Deloitte also suspects that the addressable market might be more limited than previously thought with a growing cultural resistance to its “woke” status — even among those seeking to reduce red meat consumption.

 

Bloomberg

All of Norfolk and Suffolk, and parts of Essex, have been made subject to avian flu restrictions.

The Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) had been established to mitigate the risk of further outbreaks, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said.

It follows a number of cases in poultry and wild and captive birds.

The UK’s deputy chief veterinary officer Richard Irvine said bird keepers “must urgently take action”.

Incidents have been confirmed near Hadleigh, Suffolk and in Northwold and Honington, which are either side of the county border near Thetford, Norfolk.

There was also a separate outbreaks at Honington, and others in Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk and Attleborough in Norfolk a week ago.

The new AIPZ was declared following a number of detections of bird flu in both poultry and wild birds across Norfolk, Suffolk and parts of Essex, Defra said.

PARIS (AP) — A billowing column of dark smoke towered over Paris on Sunday from a warehouse blaze at a massive produce market that supplies the French capital and surrounding region with much of its fresh food and bills itself as the largest of its kind in the world.

Firefighters urged people to stay away from the area in Paris’ southern suburbs, as 100 officers and 30 fire engines battled the blaze at the Rungis International Market.

Capt. Marc Le Moine, a spokesman for the Paris fire service, said no one was injured. The fire was brought under control and there was no risk of it spreading from the soccer field-sized warehouse, covering an area of 7,000 square meters (1.7 acres), he said.

The cause of the blaze was unknown but will be investigated, he added.

 

AP News

A sector once favoured by investors is coming under pressure amid rising prices for consumers.

The increasing pressure on consumers has extinguished any hopes of a rebound in sales of plant-based meat this year, dealing a blow to a sector that was an investors’ favourite when shoppers were prepared to pay higher prices for the product. New figures show that after climbing over the past two years in the UK, the growth in sales of plant-based meats was just 2.5 per cent in the 36 weeks to early September, according to market research firm Kantar.

Sales had climbed 40 per cent in 2020 and 14 per cent last year. In the US, meanwhile, the tougher economic backdrop has depressed a market that had started to struggle last year. Sales were down 0.4 per cent in the 32 weeks to early August, according to data provider Spins, after they fell 0.5 per cent last year. Sales had surged 46 per cent in 2020. Jeff Crumpton, senior manager at Spins, said “flexitarians” — people who eat only moderate amounts of meat — were thinking twice about plant-based meats as pressure on incomes grew as a result of increasing food prices.

“They’re having to make a difficult decision with what their budget is,” he said.

 

By Emiko Terazono and Judith Evans / Financial Times