Overview
- IERAL's moving 12-month measure for August 2025–July 2026 shows apparent chicken consumption at 47 kg per person and beef at 46.7 kg, the first time chicken leads on that continuous-period metric.
- The shift was driven by price relativity: over the same period one kilo of beef cost about the equivalent of 3.6 kilos of whole chicken, encouraging substitution toward poultry and pork.
- Beef availability fell sharply as slaughter fell 8.8% and production per person dropped from 69 to 64.6 kg, while exports rose in value to USD 4,729 million and average export prices climbed nearly 30%.
- Retailers in places such as La Plata report stronger demand for promoted chicken cuts from price-sensitive shoppers, which helped keep total meat intake high at 113.8 kg per person despite the vaccine decline.
- Longer-term trends and producer behaviour leave the outlook unclear: farmers are retaining breeding females and feedlot flows show fewer incoming animals, which could limit short-term beef recovery but may support future production.