World meat industry news

The cost of meat reaches 255 UAH per kg. The consumption of beef by Ukrainians is constantly decreasing along with a decrease in livestock and an increase in prices. The future functioning of the industry is in question.

Beef prices in Ukraine hit records in 2021. This is due to a significant decline in production – over the years of independence of Ukraine, the number of cattle decreased by a total of 88%, and since the beginning of the year -– by 6.7%. This was reported by the Ukrainian Agricultural Business Club.

As of October 1, there are 3.1 million heads in the country (including 1.6 million cows).

"The number of livestock in Ukraine has been declining for many years, which calls into question the functioning of the industry in the future," it was reported.

Average cost of beef in Ukraine as of October 23:

• • goulash - UAH 230.28 / kg (+ 40% from the beginning of 2021);
• • ribs - 140.48 UAH / kg (+ 48%);
• • beef tenderloin - 255 UAH / kg (+ 28%).

It is noteworthy that in the structure of meat consumption by Ukrainians (on average 53.8 kg per year), beef occupies only 15%. Experts predict a further decline in this share.

At the same time, the export of beef is 11.15 thousand tons in January-September 2021. The main buyers of Ukrainian meat are China, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Imports for the same period reached 10.7 thousand tons – mainly from Austria, the USA and Lithuania.

Earlier, UBR.ua said that pork in Ukraine could rise in price by 50-100%. This is due to the reduction in cheap imports from the EU.