An official source reports that this is due to easy availability of locally produced feed ingredients, maize and soybean meal, which are expensive and in short supply in other countries.

Despite not reaching record levels, consistently high harvests of these crops in recent years mean that the country has been able to accumulate increasing stocks of these vital raw materials.

As a result of this and strong demand for meat, producers have an incentive to raise their output.

They are not immune from rising prices in the medium term but a slowdown in price rises during 2009 is predicted. A fall in price is thought to be unlikely, even in Brazil, as long as the global supply and demand situation remains unbalanced.

Prices in 2008 are predicted to be 52 per cent higher for pork and 18 per cent higher for poultry meat than last year. Increases for next year are expected to be 8.8 per cent and 9.9 per cent for pork and poultry meat, respectively.

This year, it is predicted that output of pork will be 3.0 per cent higher than last year, and poultry meat 2.5 per cent higher. For 2009, further rises of 1 per cent and 2.54 per cent are expected for pork and poultry, respectively.