Argentina exported more than 900 thousand tons of meat and set a record after a century

In 2024, Argentina reached a total of 935,261 tons of beef exported, marking a new achievement, only surpassed by the historical record of 981,000 tons reached in 1924. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, led by Sergio Iraeta, "the country consolidates its global leadership with a historic performance of the meat sector and exceeds 900,000 tons after a century."

“The record, which had already been anticipated months ago, was confirmed by the report of the Livestock Analysis Coordination of the National Directorate of Livestock Production of this Secretariat, based on data from Indec. The growth recorded in 2024 implies an increase of 10% in volume and 9% in value compared to 2023, despite a slight drop of 1% in average prices per ton,” reported the agricultural portfolio.

In turn, they detailed that, of the production of 3,178 million tons of bone-in beef last year, 29.4% was destined for export .

It is important to remember that beef exports in January did not follow the same trend: there was a decrease of 20.1% compared to December of the previous year, and the decline compared to January 2024 reached 25.4%.

In this context, the Secretariat highlighted that exports included chilled and frozen cuts, as well as processed products, "destined for 53 international markets, 11 more than in the previous year."

“The main destinations include China, the European Union (EU), Israel, the United States and Chile, whose purchase volumes increased by percentages ranging from 2% (China) to 45% (United States). In addition, emerging countries such as Mexico, Canada and Malaysia also registered significant growth,” they said.

“As for chilled cuts, which grew by 9% in volume, the additional requests from Chile, Mexico and the EU stood out, adding up to additional purchases of 9,200 tons of product weight. These products, such as narrow ribeye, wide ribeye, loin and rump heart, reached prices above US$10,000 per ton, with an average increase of 4% in prices per ton,” they added.

As for frozen cuts, exports increased by 10% in volume, “with notable transactions to the United States (over quota), China, Israel, Canada, the EU, Mexico and Malaysia, experiencing a 7% increase in value despite a 3% drop in prices in this category.”

The Government believes that the sector has “a promising future”. “This performance of Argentine beef exports reflects a combination of quality, market diversification and the ability to adapt to international demands. With the opening of new destinations and the consolidation of key trade relations, the national meat sector is emerging as a pillar of the country's economic growth,” they concluded.