He pointed out that, according to the data published by the National Directorate of Agricultural Commercial Control (DNCCA), a slaughter of 7,321,403 cattle was confirmed so far this year, a figure that is 13% higher than that registered during the first half of last year and the highest since 2009 when, as a result of another great drought, a total of 7,796,914 animals were slaughtered.
However, unlike then, the number of kilos achieved per slaughtered animal is substantially higher, an average of 226 kilos per hooked beef this year against 210 kilos in 2009.
This improvement in the slaughter weights that has been taking place in recent years allowed in a certain way to moderate the losses that are inevitably left by climatic contexts such as those registered. Although this year the effect of the dry season is clearly perceived in a drop in the average slaughter weights, the drop is substantially less than that registered during the previous dry season, which occurred precisely in a context of scarce incentives for production.
In turn, this year the role played by the feedlots in the first months was fundamental. Had it not been for the receptivity shown by the corrals during the most critical months of departure from the ranch, the losses in meat production would have been greater.
Indeed, during the first semester of this year, the feedlots received 2.87 million finished animals, 13% more than what was registered a year ago and again the highest number since 2009 when more than 3.1 million heads were enclosed. .
But, unlike the one where the departures of these animals were only reflected in the second half of the year with a phenomenal offer of 3.25 million animals, so far this year the feedlots have dumped a total of 2.45 million finished animals. Measured as a contribution to the slaughter, this number represents 34% of the total slaughter, a percentage that, far from showing the ups and downs of previous years, has managed to stabilize and even increase slightly, allowing to somewhat cushion this type of climatic adversities.
For the second semester, the same seasonality of output that the pens present leads to projecting a greater supply of finished cattle. In 2009, the feedlots went from contributing 29% of the total slaughter in the first semester to 39% during the second half of the year. Although this year the percentage contributed by the feedlot during the first half of the year is higher (34%), it seems to have found a certain limit to growth, due to the advancement observed in the filling process.
In fact, if we look at the Replacement Index, an indicator that measures the amount of cattle that enters the feedlot in relation to the amount that leaves during the same period, we clearly see this advance of practically a month both in the filling of the pens and in the beginning of the emptying. , giving way from this second half of the year to a gradual recomposition of the rearing in the field.
Specifically, more stabilized production systems in terms of weight gains in the field, added to a good articulation and management of the pens, is allowing this “post-dry” period to pass more efficiently.
To the extent that the fields continue to evolve favorably and the rearing systems are recomposed as key links in the integration with the corral, livestock production will be able to face this type of event, minimizing the ups and downs on its path to growth.
2023-07-11 15:16:20
#Bovine #slaughter #grew #semester #highest