São Paulo – Minerva Foods, the Brazilian-based meat packing company that ranks among Latin America’s leading producers of raw beef, livestock and their products, reports that it grossed US$ 4.8 billion from exports last year. Export revenues were up 24.4% from US$ 3.9 billion the prior year.
Exports made up 65% of total revenues for Minerva, a consequence of stronger demand and weaker supply of beef on the international market, as per the Minerva Foods balance sheet. The document mentions the fact that the average US dollar price of beef exported from Brazil was up 4% in 2014 from 2013, and that the American currency appreciated by 9% against Brazil’s own real.
The Middle East’s share of overall exports, however, was down two percentage points, from 18% to 16%, because of increased sales to other areas, Asia included. “The company’s strategy is to take advantage of strong consumption in markets with higher profitability,” the balance sheet reads.
The share of Africa – where Arab countries are also located – in overall Minerva Foods exports remained flat at 15%. The enterprise stresses, however, that export volumes to the region increased. “The highlight countries were Egypt, Algeria, and Libya, in North Africa, which demand high profitability [meat] cuts, and South Africa, in the Sub-Saharan region, which we have re-entered recently,” the company’s report says.
Minerva slaughtered 2.1 million heads of cattle last year, used 70.9% of capacity and sold 514,700 tonnes. Net income was R$ 7 billion (US$ 2.3 billion at current exchange rates), up 28.1% from 2013 (not considering results stemming from recent acquisitions). Adjusted Ebitda stood at R$ 760.3 million (US$ 257.3 million) in 2014. The company posted losses of R$ 418 million (US$ 141.4 million).
Minerva reports that it made progress on key fronts to its growth last year, for instance by acquiring slaughtering and deboning plants in Minas Gerais, Brazil and in Uruguay, and completing the acquisition processes for two units in Brazil’s Mato Grosso state.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
