Dos Pinos will begin to compete in the Costa Rican beef, pork and sausage market through the La Granja brand.
The companies informed that the plan is to offer the new line of products starting in the second half of 2021, being caterers, bakeries and grocery stores, the marketing channels that will be used to reach consumers.
In order to improve the sector's production management and guarantee safe pork trade, the Guatemalan government is moving forward with the implementation of the Official Pork Traceability Program.
The program, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Food (Maga), consists of placing radiofrequency button-type and flag-type devices for breeding animals.
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.
AR Holdings will invest $1.5 million in the opening of The Capital Grille restaurant on Avenida Escazu.
According to information provided by the conglomerate, the restaurant is expected to open to the public by the end of the first semester of 2021 in premises that will have an area of 470 square meters.
With the new laboratory for the analysis of toxic residues of bovine, porcine and poultry meat, which will begin to operate as of March 2021, Panama will be able to begin exporting to the US market.
Due to the fact that the country so far lacks a laboratory to certify the quality of the meat, Panama cannot export to the United States, however, authorities announced that next year the situation will change.
In the last five years, pork consumption in Central America increased 42%, from 197,000 tons in 2014 to nearly 279,000 tons in 2019, growth that was boosted by the Salvadoran and Honduran markets.
Figures from the "Pork Market Snapshot" prepared by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, detail that in the last two years’ regional consumption of pork registered a 3% increase, since between 2018 and 2019 it is estimated that demand in Central America rose from 270 thousand metric tons to 279 thousand tons.
When the country's authorities begin to lift the restrictions that have been taken to prevent the spread of covid-19, it is predicted that in the meat sector, sales of chicken could contract by 2%.
Through a demand/income sensitivity model developed by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, variations in household demand for different goods and services can be projected as the most critical phases of the spread of covid-19 are overcome and the measures restricting mobility in the countries of the region are lifted.
When the economies of Central America begin to relax the restrictions that have been taken to prevent the spread of covid-19, it is expected that in the area of processed meats, sales of pork ham will be among the most contracted.
Using a demand/income sensitivity model developed by the Trade Intelligence Unit of CentralAmericaData, it is possible to project the variations that household demand for different goods and services will undergo as the most critical phases of the spread of covid-19 are overcome and the measures restricting mobility in the countries of the region are lifted.
The closure of restaurants and hotels and the restrictions on opening hours in cantonal markets and supermarkets explain the drop in sales reported by agricultural producers.
The Chamber of Agriculture carried out a survey to measure the first economic effects of the covid-19 outbreak in the country, and different agricultural producers', agro-exporters', agro-industrial and agricultural cooperatives' associations were consulted.
Between the first two months of 2019 and the same period in 2020, the number of pigs slaughtered in Panama increased by only 1%, while cattle slaughtering grew by 3%.
The General Comptroller's Office of the Republic of Panama reported that 80,841 heads of pigs were slaughtered in the first two months of the year, a figure higher than the 80,067 reported in the same period of 2019.
Between January 2019 and the same period in 2020, the number of pigs slaughtered in Panama increased by 4%, while cattle slaughtering grew by 2%.
According to figures from the General Comptroller's Office of the Republic of Panama, 41,226 heads of pigs were slaughtered in the first month of the year, which is higher than the 39,506 reported in the same period of 2019.
After meeting all the requirements demanded by the Asian country's authorities, the first shipment of 24,000 kilos of frozen pork cuts was sent on February 14.
The company that made the first shipment is Carnes Zamora, which in the first shipment included chops, ribs, shoulders, fat, skin, legs, horns and ears.
Between 2018 and 2019, the number of cattle slaughtered in Panama increased 6%, while the number of pigs slaughtered decreased 9%.
According to the figures of the General Comptroller of the Republic of Panama, 341,188 heads of cattle were slaughtered last year, a figure higher than the 323,289 reported in 2018.
A 5,000 square meter industrial plant with the capacity to process 95 pigs per hour was inaugurated in the municipality of San Juan Opico, department of La Libertad.
The project, which required more than $5 million in investment, was financed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which contributed $2.3 million, and the remaining amount was disbursed by the Salvadoran Meat Industry (INCARSA).