Brazil Reports Record Beef Hide Production and Strong Export Dynamics

In the third quarter, cattle slaughter reached a record 11.2 million head. This volume resulted in the production of 10.2 million units of fully tanned hides, an increase of 18.6% compared with the second quarter, when production totaled 8.6 million units. Compared with the third quarter of 2024, growth reached 19.8%. For October and November, slaughter is expected to total 3.8 million head each month. Cumulative production of fully tanned hides for this period is estimated at 6.9 million units.

Among the hides tanned in the first half, 97.8% were chrome-tanned (wet-blue), 1.9% were tanned with tannin, and 0.3% used other methods, totaling 18.7 million tanned units.

Regarding exports, shipments reached 56,400 tonnes in October, down 4.7% from September. However, revenue reached US$97.9 million, an increase of 2.7% compared with September’s US$95.3 million.

In 2025, the distribution of export volumes by category was as follows: wet-blue (49.4%), semi-finished (20.8%), salted hide (20.3%), finished leather (7.8%) and crust (1.6%). In terms of revenue, the structure shifts: finished leather accounts for 49.8% of total revenue, wet-blue for 26.2%, semi-finished for 11.4%, crust for 8.4% and salted hide for 4.3%. The export structure reveals a notable contrast between volume and value. While wet-blue dominates volume at 49.4%, finished leather—representing only 7.8% of volume—accounts for 49.8% of revenue. This discrepancy highlights a clear strategy of value addition in the export chain.

As for major buyers, China accounts for 42.4% of exported volume, Nigeria for 13.3%, Italy for 12.7% and Vietnam for 9.6%. These countries represent 77.9% of the total exported volume. In revenue terms, China also leads with 30.2% of total value, followed by Italy (11.2%), Vietnam (10.4%), Mexico (5.7%), and Nigeria (3.0%), which together account for 60.5% of export revenue. For the fourth quarter, cattle slaughter is expected to be slightly lower, despite external demand, due to reduced cattle availability. This scenario is expected to keep hide production stable.

Source: Compre Rural

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