From 5th to 34th: Venezuela’s Decline in Brazilian Agricultural Imports

Ten years ago, Venezuela was the fifth largest importer of Brazilian farming products, but it has since fallen to the 34th position. Economic decline and difficulty paying for imports have led Brazilian companies to exit this market.

According to Secex (Secretariat of Foreign Trade), in 2014, Venezuela imported $2.9 billion worth of agricultural products from Brazil. Last year, this figure dropped to just $410 million. The meat sector, particularly beef, has seen the most significant decline. In 2014, Venezuela imported $1.3 billion in meat from Brazil, but this number plummeted to $8.6 million last year.

Beef exports amounted to $853 million a decade ago and were virtually nonexistent in 2023. Live animal exports also fell sharply, from $560 million in 2014 to $5.6 million last year. Brazil exported 160,000 tons of beef to Venezuela in 2014, making it the fourth largest market that year, but only four tons in 2023, according to Abiec (Brazilian Association of Meat Exporting Industries).

The chicken meat market also experienced a severe decline. Revenues dropped from $423 million in 2014 to $761,000 last year, according to Secex data. Even basic products like rice saw reduced imports. Venezuela, which was the second largest importer of Brazilian rice in 2018 with 593,000 tons, purchased only 219,000 tons last year.

Despite these declines, Venezuela has maintained some cereal imports from Brazil due to a guarantee agreement with China. The country’s financial struggles are also evident in its reduced imports of essential foods. Venezuela bought 690,000 tons of sugar from Brazil a decade ago but only 272,000 tons last year. The dairy sector has also suffered, with powdered milk imports dropping from 59,000 tons to just one ton over the same period.

Venezuela’s main imports now include cereals, with $242 million spent last year on 521,000 tons of corn, 219,000 tons of rice, and 107,000 tons of wheat. Soybean oil imports remain significant, with 96,000 tons imported in the previous year, ranking Venezuela fourth among Brazil’s export markets for this product. The decline in Venezuelan industrialization has also driven up imports of processed foods like flour, pastes, cookies, sauces, and seasonings, totaling $229 million last year.

Venezuela faces numerous economic challenges, including inflation, high debt, high interest rates, poverty, and external trade sanctions. Although inflation has fallen to 1% per month this year, according to government data, independent indexes still indicate a high annual rate of nearly 75%.

Source: Folha de S. Paulo

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