Chilled boneless beef international trade: a cluster analysis

The objective of this study was to measure and classify the international beef trade. For this, data related to the international chilled boneless beef (CBB) trade, the major and most important market, were analyzed. Producing countries were classified into groups according to their trade relations, and the main factors that influenced one country to prefer to import CBB from a specific exporting country were analyzed. The results revealed four markets related to client demands with regard to the sanitation and traceability of beef products. Furthermore, extrinsic characteristics of the product are discussed, such as a productive system that aims to minimize environmental impacts and to value animal welfare and respect for social demands. The markets that pay highest prices require sanitary quality of suppliers, demanding traceable and process-certified products. Brazil does not access these markets because it does not meet these requirements. To change this scenario it is necessary to eradicate FMD across the Brazilian territory, acquiring a status of a zone with minimal BSE risk, aligning the intrinsic value of the CBB with expectations of consumers and implementing a traceability program that is both feasible and acceptable for clients.