Drop in slaughter in Mato Grosso
18/03/2009
With 40% of activities on hold, abattoirs and meatpackers in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul slaughtered 18% fewer animals in the first two months of the year compared to the same period in 2008, according to the 'Superintendence' body (SFA) of the federal agriculture ministry.
Just 480,359 animals were slaughtered in January and February compared to 590,548 in the same period last year. Slaughter reduction in March may prove even more drastic as operations having been abandoned at Independencia's units in Anastácio and Nova Andradina. Together, they used to slaughter 1,800 head per day.
But not everything is going badly in the region. The federal government is preparing a salvage package to help abattoirs and meatpackers recover financially, thus preventing further problems in the production chain.
Mário Candia, president of the Mato Grosso Breeders' Association (Acrimat), has said: "Since the beginning of the financial crisis in the husbandry productive chain at the end of 2008, as a result of the closure of such companies all over the country, Acrimat has been requesting the Federal Government to release funds for the sector, as has been done for other sectors in the local economy. Companies cannot get out of financial difficulty or lack of credit by themselves".
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