Brazil exported 725,940 live cattle in January-July 2026, up 26.7% year-on-year and a record for the period. Pará accounted for 63.7% of the animals shipped abroad, followed by Rio Grande do Sul with 25.8%.
The impact on regional cattle availability is significant. In Pará, live exports were equivalent to 16.0% of state slaughter during the period, while in Rio Grande do Sul the proportion reached 20.3%. This represents direct competition with meatpackers for access to cattle and helps support prices in the regions with the largest export volumes.
In July, Turkey and Morocco were the leading buyers, accounting for 44.0% and 40.5% of shipments, respectively. Together with Iraq and Lebanon, the four markets absorbed more than 96% of the cattle exported during the month.
Although live exports represent a small share of Brazil’s cattle industry at the national level, their impact on regional markets in the leading exporting states is considerably more pronounced, Pecuária reported.
