Morocco imports Brazilian beef cattle to reduce meat prices at home

Morocco is importing Brazilian beef cattle in a bid to protect its own livestock hit by consecutive droughts and reduce meat prices at home amid soaring inflation.

Morocco has already received thousands of cattle from Brazil as part of a plan to buy 20,000 beef cattle over the next six months, including 3000 from Spain and France, Agriculture minister Mohamed Sadiki.

He told reporters last week Brazil was favored because it offered the best quality/price match.

Drought led to a 20% drop in the number of Moroccan cows as many farmers slaughter them for meat to avoid high cost of feed. This also meant a drop in milk production in the country earlier this year.

Agriculture minister said importing Brazilian beef would help protect the national cattle and keep meat prices stable after food inflation surged to 20.1% in February, pushing inflation to the unprecedented level since the 1980s of 10.1%/

After he dismissed rumors on the quality of Brazil’s cattle, he said imports undergo strict monitoring by Morocco’s food safety agency ONSA.