Brazil’s July chicken exports post highest monthly volume in 2021; revenues up nearly 50%

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil’s exports of chicken meat reached 424,400 tons in July, up 16.4% compared to the same month last year, the best monthly result in 2021, and the third highest in history for the sector, said the on Thursday the Brazilian Association of Animal Protein (ABPA).

According to ABPA, shipments of products (fresh and processed) generated revenue of US$739.2 million last month, a jump of 48.4% year-on-year, amid a pass-through of production costs the industry has been facing, particularly a surge in the cost of grains used as animal feed, such as corn.

This is the first time since July 2018 that revenue from chicken meat exports has surpassed the US$700 million mark, according to the association.

“With high value-added markets holding the top positions among the main destinations, there was a strong rise in the end result of July sales, with a direct impact on the year’s balance,” ABPA president Ricardo Santin said in a statement.

“In this context, there was a natural pass-through of production costs, which has impacted the prices of animal protein not only in Brazil, but also in the international market,” he added.

The accumulated sales of chicken meat in 2021 reached 2,668,000 tons, up 7.98% compared to the first 7 months of 2020, while revenues increased 15.7% to US$4.216 billion.

Brazil’s main client in the sector, China imported 63,100 tons in July, an increase of 4.5% year-on-year. Next came Japan, which took second place by purchasing 35,700 tons (+2.6%). The United Arab Emirates, the main highlight in the halal market, accounted for the purchase of 34,000 tons of the protein in July, a leap of 75.7%, ABPA added.

ABPA expects this positive momentum to continue until the end of the year, citing factors such as the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The economic recovery of several importing countries and the substantial increase in the number of people vaccinated against Covid in the world have contributed to the volumes achieved in recent months. The trend is for high volumes in exports until the end of the year,” said ABPA’s director of markets Luis Rua.