Slight increase in supply is reflected in slaughter

Cattle slaughter grew by more than 1,000 head and was the highest in six weeks. INAC reported that in the week ending March 29, 47,150 cattle were processed, 1,267 more than the previous week and significantly higher than the same week last year, which coincided with Easter.

The weekly growth was primarily in the cow category, up 12% to 17,077 head; steers totaled 23,268, an increase of 3% from the previous week.

The most active plant was Marfrig-Tacuarembó with 6,508 cattle, the highest level for that plant so far this year. It was followed by Las Piedras (3,571) and Pando (3,366). Across four plants, Marfrig slaughtered 15,218 head (also the highest figure this year), Minerva 11,894, and the Urgal family, in two plants, 6,570.

With only one business day left in the month, March’s total stands at 177,810 cattle slaughtered, just over 1,200 more than in the same period last year.