Cattle slaughter in the first quarter of 2013 (8.1 million head) registered an increase of 12.7% in relation to the same quarter of 2012 and was the highest result for a Q1 in the survey's time series. Cumulative carcass weight (1.9 million metric tons) was 13.2% higher than in Q1 of 2012.

Chicken slaughter (1.3 billion head) posted a rise of 3.4% in relation to Q4 and a drop of 1.2% over Q1 of 2012.

The slaughter of pigs and hogs (8.9 million head) had a decrease of 1.9% over Q4 and a rise of 1.7% against the same quarter of 2012.

The purchase of raw milk was 5.7 billion liters, with falls of 1.4% over Q1 2012 and of 2.0% in relation to Q4 2012.

In Q1 of 2013, 9.1 million of cattle hide were purchased, representing an increase of 8.1% in the comparison with Q1 of 2012 and of 4.1% over Q4.

The production of hen eggs totaled 668.3 million dozens, a drop of 0.7% in relation to the 1^st quarter of 2012. And in relation to the 4th quarter, there was a rise of 0.8%.

This and further information are available in the results of the Quarterly Surveys of Animal Slaughter and Production of Milk, Leather and Eggs for the first quarter of 2013.  The complete publication is available at https://www.ibge.gov.br/english/estatistica/indicadores/agropecuaria/producaoagropecuaria/default.shtm

Cattle slaughter hit a record for a Q1 in the time series

In the first quarter of 2013, 8.1 cattle head were slaughtered, a negative change of 0.7% in relation to the previous quarter and an increase of 12.7% over the 1st quarter of 2012. The quantity of cattle slaughtered in the 1^st quarter of 2013 was the biggest registered for a first quarter in the cattle slaughter time series since 1997, when the Systematic Survey of Agricultural Production was introduced.

The cumulative carcass weight in Q1 of 2013 (1.9 million metric tons) contracted 2,4% against the previous quarter and increases 13.2% in relation to Q1 2012. The cumulative carcass weight of cattle slaughtered in the 1st quarter of 2013 was also the biggest registered for a first quarter in the time series since 1997.

The quantity of cattle slaughtered recorded increase for all regions in the comparison between Q1 2013 and the same period a year ago: 17.5% in the Central-West region; 18.1% in the Southeast; 6.2% in the North; 8.0% in the South; and 2.3% in the Northeast.

In the cattle slaughter ranking by Federation Units, the states holding the first 11 positions registered a rise in the quantity of slaughtered head, in the comparison between the first quarter of 2013 and the same period a year ago. The highlight is Mato Grosso, the main cattle slaughterer, which increased 20.5% in the period.

Chicken slaughter posts a decrease of 1.2% in relation to the 1^st quarter of 2012

In Q1 2013, 1.3 billion chicken head were slaughtered, a 3.4% rise in relation to the previous quarter. In the comparison with the same period of 2012, there was 1.2% decrease. The cumulative carcass weight was 2.9 million metric tons, representing a 4.3% rise in relation to that registered in the previous quarter and a 0.9% drop in the comparison with the 1^st quarter of 2012.

In Q1 2013, the three states of the South Region together slaughtered 60.2% of the national overall and the Southeast contributed with 20.1%. In the comparison with Q4 2012, Rio Grande do Sul raised the slaughter to 12.4% and São Paulo posted a drop of 6.1%.

Pig slaughter posts a rise of 1.7% over Q1 2012

In the 1^st quarter of 2012, 8.9 million pigs and hogs were slaughtered, a drop of 1.9% in relation to the previous quarter and a rise of 1.7% in relation to the same period of 2012.  The time series of the quarterly slaughter of pigs and hogs since 2008 shows that this type of slaughter has been increasing among the same quarters in the annual comparison.

The cumulative carcass weight in Q1 2013 reached 851.2 thousand metric tons, representing a 1.5% fall in relation to the previous quarter and a rise of 2.5% in relation to the same period of 2012.

The South Region accounted for 65.8% of the national slaughter of pigs and hogs in Q1 of 2013, followed by the Southeast, Central-West, Northeast and North Regions. Comparing the 1^st quarters of 2013-2012, the highlight was the Southeast, the only region to present increase (1.1%), due to the 11.2% slaughter increment in Minas Gerais. Rio Grande do Sul also increased chicken slaughter in 8.8%; on the other hand, Santa Catarina, which leads the national ranking, registered a 6.4% drop in the number of slaughtered head, resulting in a negative change of 0.6% in the South Region slaughter.

Milk purchase posts a decrease of 1.4% in relation to the 1^st quarter of 2012

The purchase of raw milk was 5.7 billion liters in Q1 2013, with falls of 1.4% over Q1 2012 and 2.0% in relation to Q4 2012.  Out of this total, 92.5% came from establishments under federal inspection.

Regionally, there was an output reduction in the Northeast, Central-West and North of country. Minas Gerais was the state that most purchased raw milk destined to the industry in Q1 2013 and contributed with 25.7% to the national overall, followed by Rio Grande do Sul (14.6%) and Paraná (12.5%).

Leather purchase posts a rise of 8.1% over Q1 2012

In Q1 of 2013, 9.1 million of cattle hide were purchased, representing an increase of 8.1% in the comparison with Q1 of 2012 and of 4.1% over Q4 of the same year. Out of the total leather purchased, 63.6% came from refrigerated slaughterhouses. Among the states, the three biggest leather buyers in the country recorded important changes: Mato Grosso (3.8%), Mato Grosso do Sul (13.3%) and São Paulo (17.7%).

Production of hen eggs grows 0.8% in relation to the 4^th quarter of 2010

The production of hen eggs totaled 668.3 million dozens in Q1 of 2013, a drop of 0.7% in relation to the 1st quarter of 2012. And in relation to the 4th quarter of the same year, there was a rise of 0.8%. The greatest national producers of hen eggs were São Paulo (29.4%), Minas Gerais (10.5%) and Paraná (9.5%).