Mexico, the sixth largest producer of animal feed on a global scale
The country generates 34.81 million tons of these products a year, below China, EU, Brazil, Russia, and India, reveals the agency of the branch.
Mexico has consolidated itself as the sixth largest producer of animal feed on a global scale, said the National Council of Feed Manufacturers and Animal Nutrition (Conafab). In conference, the general director of the agency, Genaro Bernal, explained that the country produces approximately 34.81 million tons per year, ranking below China, with a production of 187.89 million tons, the United States, with 177.21, Brazil, with 68.65, and Russia and India, with 39.16 and 38.74 million tons, respectively.
This year, national manufacturers will reach a production of 36 million tons, processed in 540 plants in the country. The industry will reach a value of 10 billion 900 million dollars in 2019, a figure that will represent a slowdown in the growth of the industry between 1 and 1.5 percentage points. In the case of pet food, there is still an opportunity for growth since most owners still give their pets unbalanced food. It is estimated that pet food will reach USD 95 billion by year-end, a positive variation of 5.3 percent compared to the same period last year.
Insecurity hits hard
The issue of insecurity in the country has impacted the activities of animal feed producers, according to Conafab. "This is an issue that as a country is downgrading us. We have denounced it and we see that no industry is not suffering from this scourge," Bernal said. According to the representative of the agency, truck theft has intensified in recent years, going from two to three a year to the same figure but monthly in full units, this involves transporters of finished food and premixes.
"There are regions where the partners no longer want to go," said the director, who indicated that among the areas where there is a greater crime are Iztapalapa in Mexico City, Puebla, and Veracruz. He added, without pointing out the number of losses that has meant for the industry, that insecurity has broken the competitiveness for some producers and has also reached the food industry and the entire value chain that involves the contact of manufacturers of balanced food. Bernal trusted that the entry of the National Guard in areas with high insecurity favors the sector that leads and that the criminality that has increased decreases.
