Dairy producers in Nicaragua are facing a scenario of falling prices, a situation resulting from the oversupply of this type of food reported in the local market.
Executives of the National Livestock Commission of Nicaragua (Conagan) report that with the onset of winter, the country's trading partners are reducing dairy purchases to protect local production.
During 2020, Central American imports of infant formula for infant feeding packaged for retail sale totaled $134 million, an amount that is 9% lower than the amount reported in 2019.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graph"]
Because the level of rainfall forecast for the winter is expected to favor livestock activity, entrepreneurs in the sector expect local production of meat and milk to grow during 2021.
Experts predict that this year's winter conditions will lead to an increase in green pasture for cattle. This factor will boost milk and meat production.
In terms of volume traded, dairy sales to Guatemala have gained ground and are currently the second most important market for Nicaraguan companies.
During the first quarter of 2021 Nicaragua exported 17.14 million kilograms of dairy products, of the total volume 12 million kilograms were purchased by Salvadoran companies, 2.61 million kilograms were placed in the Guatemalan market and 2.04 million kilograms were traded in the United States.
As a result of the blockade that has been in place since July 2020 on the entry of animal products from Costa Rica into the Panamanian market, Costa Rican exports to Panama are reported to have fallen and companies such as Dos Pinos are reporting losses in the millions.
The trade conflict began when Panama informed the National Animal Health Service (SENASA), an agency of Costa Rica's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), of the decision not to extend export authorization to a list of previously authorized Costa Rican establishments that have been trading in the Panamanian market for many years.
From January to June 2020, trade in milk and dairy products between Central American countries totaled $183 million, 19% more than what was recorded in the same period of 2019.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with the graph"]
The increase in the international prices of corn and soybeans, inputs used to produce animal feed, threatens to put upward pressure on the production costs of meat, eggs and dairy products.
In recent months, the international price of a bushel (27 kilos) of soybeans increased by 28%, from $10.6 to $13.62, between November 1, 2020 and January 28, 2021.
Arguing that there is greater potential for sustainable and profitable expansion in Nicaragua and Guatemala, the Mexican business group dedicated to dairy production decided to close the operations of its production plant in Costa Rica.
From January to July 2020, companies in the countries of the region imported from Mexico infant and toddler formulas for $57 million, and 50% was purchased by companies in Honduras and Nicaragua.
Figures from the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData: [GRAFICA caption="Click to interact with graphic"]
In Nicaragua, from January to July of this year, exports of livestock products totaled $449 million, 16% more than reported for the same period in 2019, mainly due to increased sales of beef.
Figures from the Export Processing Center (Cetrex) indicate that between January and July 2019 and the same period this year, foreign sales of livestock products increased from $388 million to $449 million.
In Central America more than 6 million people search online and participate in conversations associated with dairy products, with ice cream, fudge and yogurt being some of the products with the greatest presence in consumer interactions.
An analysis of consumer interests and preferences in Central America, prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, yields interesting results on people's preferences and tastes in food and other types of products or services.
In the last five years, liquid milk sales in Central America increased 16%, from $3,935 million in 2014 to about $4,566 million in 2019, growth that was boosted by the Costa Rican and Honduran markets.
Figures from the "Liquid Milk Market Snapshot" prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, detail that in the last five years the volume consumed at regional level of liquid milk registered an increase, since between 2014 and 2019 it is estimated that demand in Central America rose from 3,907 to 4,202 million liters.
After a quarantine was decreed in El Salvador because of the spread of covid-19, there is uncertainty among Nicaraguan producers because the borders may be closed for their products.
Since March 11, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has decreed a nationwide quarantine, arguing that there is a risk of spreading the coronavirus to neighboring countries, where there are already several confirmed cases.