In the same period, however, the main substitutes for beef showed greater variations. According to the IPCVA report, the price of fresh chicken was up 3.6% per month in August and accumulated a 93.8% year-on-year increase (well above the nominal inflation of 78.5%). In the case of pork, its monthly increase is accelerated, increasing by 8.9% in August compared to July and thus adding increases of 78.6% compared to the same month of 2021.
“Over the past twelve months, beef had a significantly lower relative price (-14.9%) compared to that recorded a year ago compared to poultry meat: in August 2021 3.58 kilograms of fresh whole chicken with one kilogram of roast could be purchased and in the last month of August the purchasing capacity of cut roast beef in terms of poultry meat was reduced to 3.04 kilograms ”, analyzes the IPCVA in its monthly report
“Also, up front when cut of pork breast, roast beef showed a moderately lower relative price, (-7.7%)and the purchasing power of beef was reduced from 1.47 to 1.35 kilograms of pork compared to August 2021 and 2022, “the study added.
Analyses
In its usual monthly report in which the evolution of the price of meat is analyzed, the Center for Political Economy of Argentina (CEPA) underlined that “by making a chronology of what has happened in the last two years, it is possible to recall that After a more than 75% increase in over-the-counter beef prices in 2020, the first half of 2021 began with new increases that totaled a further 35% increase.
“In this situation, The national government has taken a number of measures to stop the generalized increases in the value chain. These measures made it possible to reverse the upward trend and, between July and October 2021, prices fell by 3%. However, November and December, months when consumption normally increases, once again showed significant increases in the price of meat, respectively of 11% and 10% on average. These increases remain more moderate, in the first five months of the year 2022, accumulating an increase of 35%.
From that moment on, the slowdown in the price of beef intensified. Indeed, as agricultural consultant Javier Preciado Patiño explained on his Twitter account, since May the value of the cuts surveyed by INDEC grew on average by 0.7%, compared to an accumulated 25% of the CPI.
Consumption
Beyond the fact that in recent months the price of the beef presented rises well below the levels of general inflation, domestic consumption does not resume and continues at historic lows.
In fact, according to the report prepared by the Chamber of Commerce and Meat Industry (CICCRA), in terms of per capita consumption, In August, the twelve-month moving average was 47 kilos / year.. In the year-over-year comparison it is 0.4% compared to the same month in 2021 e turned out to be 7.6% lower than in August 2019.
Meanwhile, in terms of production, in the first eight months there was a 4.5% growth in tons of bone-in beef. While exports grew by 9.4% compared to the same period in 2021. Therefore, domestic absorption grew by around 2.6%.
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