Cattle slaughter declined across all four Mercosur countries during the first half of the year. The decrease reached 6%, considering export-oriented plants in Brazil and Paraguay and all registered slaughter plants in Argentina and Uruguay.
Higher average carcass weights partially offset the decline in slaughter numbers. Even so, beef production at the plants considered is estimated to have fallen by about 5% year-on-year to 5.7 million tonnes carcass weight, a reduction of approximately 270,000 tonnes.
The sharpest declines in slaughter were recorded in Paraguay (-24%) and Uruguay (-16%), while slaughter fell 9% in Argentina and 2% in Brazil.
The year-on-year gap is expected to widen during the second half, mainly because Brazil is projected to see a further decline in cattle available for slaughter, particularly females, as the country enters a herd rebuilding phase. By contrast, the declines in Uruguay and Paraguay are expected to moderate. In Argentina, analysts expect slaughter to remain around 9-10% below last year's level for 2026.
