The price of meat remains flat: it rose barely 0.1% in October and has accumulated an increase of 15.7% for the year

The data arises from the latest survey by the Institute for the Promotion of Argentine Beef (IPCVA), carried out during the first and third week of October at the AMBA.

The interannual comparison, however, shows another dimension of the price movement: beef accumulates an increase of 49.9% compared to October 2025. The difference responds to the important adjustments that occurred during the last twelve months, although in recent months the dynamics changed and values ​​began to move below inflation.

Among cuts, the main increases in October corresponded to loin (2.4%), common meat (1.5%) and loin ball (0.9%). In the opposite direction, the peceto fell 2.3%, while the roast beef and the matambre fell 1% and the roast fell 0.7%.

Meanwhile, fresh chicken increased 0.2% in October and accumulated a rise of 22% in the first ten months of the year, while the pork breast did not register monthly variations and advanced 14% in the accumulated year.

In year-on-year terms, chicken increased 30.4% and pork 27%, both below beef. Thus, during October, with the value of one kilo of roast, 3.57 kilos of fresh chicken could be purchased. In the average of the first ten months of the year, this purchasing capacity reached 3.69 kilos, 19.1% more than in the same period of 2025.

Compared to pork, the ratio was 1.88 kilos of breast for every kilo of roast in October. In the January-October average, purchasing power reached 1.97 kilos, 28.1% higher than the same period last year.

The stability of consumer prices occurs in parallel with an adjustment in farm values. In his latest analysis of the livestock market published in Clarín Ruralconsultant Ignacio Iriarte pointed out that the real prices of livestock They have accumulated eight consecutive months of decline and a retraction of close to 20% since February.

The maximums reached between February and March were among the highest in the entire 2005-2026 series measured in constant currency. At that time, The values ​​were 44% above the historical average. Currently, that difference has been reduced to 22%.

For Iriarte, the market also does not show the signs of seasonal recovery that characterized four of the last five years during the last quarter. Between 2021 and 2025, real prices tended to recover towards the end of the year, driven by factors of economic and political uncertainty. This time, however, the scenario is different: there is relative exchange stability, weakness in domestic consumption and less buying pressure from exports.

In that context, The main factor that sustains the values ​​of the ranch continues to be the lower availability of animals. During the first ten months of 2026, beef slaughter fell 10% year-on-year and meat production fell 6.5%. The difference between both falls is explained by the higher average weight of the animals sent to the refrigerator.

The weakness of domestic demand appears as one of the central factors that explain why the increases in the treasury cannot be fully transferred to the counter.. The domestic market absorbs around two-thirds of national production and continues to be conditioned by the loss of purchasing power.

Iriarte recalled that between 2012 and 2019, an average salary allowed them to buy about 178 kilos of beef per month, while currently that capacity is around 100 kilosdespite some recovery in recent months.

On the other hand, the export business maintains a favorable performance. According to Iriarte, FOB prices for Argentine meat are close to 35% above the levels of two years ago, with values ​​close to historical highs in destinations such as the European Union, Israel, Chile and China.

Added to this situation are different international factors that favor the placement of Argentine meat: the quota granted by China, the lower seasonal availability of Brazil and Australia, the restrictions that Brazil faces in supplying the European Union, the first effects of the agreement between Mercosur and the EU and the 80,000 additional tons enabled by the United States.

The limitation, however, is the supply. Exporters do not find much room to increase shipped volumes and are seeking to improve the prices obtained in each destination.