Brazil’s Beef Exports to Argentina Surge This Year

Brazil’s beef exports to Argentina have soared this year, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture.

From January to October, 11,000 tonnes were shipped to the neighboring country — more than 20 times the 526 tonnes exported in the same period last year.

Argentina is not among Brazil’s main buyers: even with this surge, imports by the neighboring country represent less than 1% of the volume purchased by China, Brazil’s largest beef customer, for example.

Even so, the spike in sales caught the attention of specialists. They identified two reasons: the tariff hike (“tarifaço”) imposed by the U.S. on Brazil, and the drop in Argentina’s beef production.

Impact of the U.S. Tariff

According to analysts, the United States’ tariff hike on Brazilian goods starting in April encouraged Argentinians to sell more beef to the American market.

Argentina is the world’s fifth-largest beef producer, behind the U.S., Brazil, China, and India.

With increased exports to the U.S., Argentina turned to Brazilian beef to avoid domestic supply shortages, since the country has the highest per capita beef consumption in the world.

The peak in Argentina’s purchases of Brazilian beef occurred in September, one month after Trump increased the surcharge on Brazil to 50%, a measure that was only lifted in November.

Drop in Local Production

According to Safras & Mercado consultant Fernando Henrique Iglesias, the increase in purchases also occurred because Argentina’s production fell due to droughts and economic measures adopted by the previous government, which restricted the country’s exports.

Beef production in Argentina has been declining for the past two years, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The forecast for 2025 is a 100,000-tonne drop compared to 2024, similar to the volume lost last year.

“At the beginning of this decade, La Niña effects ended up reducing cow pregnancy rates in Argentina. Production costs became very high, leading to herd shrinkage,” Iglesias says.

From 2023 to 2025, the number of cattle in Argentina fell from 68.8 million to 67 million, according to the USDA.

In addition, economic measures by former President Alberto Fernández pushed ranchers to cut production. Four days after taking office, Fernández implemented export taxes on several agricultural products, including a 9% tax on beef. In May 2021, he suspended beef exports for 30 days.

Boost to Exports

The current liberal government of Javier Milei has adopted measures opposite to those of his predecessor. He reduced the export tax on beef and eliminated it from September 22 to October 31 this year.

According to Thiago Bernardino de Carvalho, head of livestock analysis at Cepea/USP, these measures boosted exports.

“With Argentina able to export more, less beef remains in the domestic market, prices rise, and they turn to markets like Brazil to buy additional beef,” he says.

Data from the Argentine Chamber of the Meat Industry and Commerce (Ciccra) show that Argentina’s beef exports fell 10.5% in volume between January and October compared to the same period in 2024, driven by reduced purchases from China.

On the other hand, during the same period, Argentine sales to the U.S. increased 7.5%, while Brazilian exports to the Americans plunged due to the tariff hike.

According to Lygia Pimentel, CEO of Agrifatto, the partial removal of Brazilian beef from the U.S. market opened room for Argentina.

Countries like Paraguay, Argentina, and Australia — major beef producers and exporters — have been buying beef from Brazil to supply their own domestic markets while exporting their own production to the United States. This practice is legal and differs from triangulation, which would involve shipping U.S.-origin beef purchased initially from Brazil.

Carvalho, from Cepea, notes that besides geographic proximity, Brazil has the cheapest beef on the international market, which favors its selection by Argentinians.

According to Agrifatto data, while the price of cattle in Brazil averages US$61, in Argentina it reaches US$74.8, in Uruguay US$75.7, and in Paraguay US$64.5.

Argentina’s purchases of Brazilian beef fell in October from the September peak, but remained above the level recorded a year earlier.

According to Iglesias, the trend is for Brazil to continue increasing sales to Argentina.

“With Argentine production expected to remain depressed in 2026, this should further encourage imports,” he says.

Source: G1

Sharing is caring!