Source: MEATINGPLACE, 11/27/14


Brazil's second-largest beef processor, Marfrig Global Foods, earlier this month introduced a program for improving beef cattle genetics and reducing growth time by more than 50 percent, with a goal of surpassing the United States' annual beef production by 2017.

Marfrig + is a genetics program to increase the efficiency and productivity of Brazilian beef cattle while maintaining the highest standards of quality and sustainability. In attendance at the launch event in Sao Paulo were representatives from national breeders, feedlots, retailers, academic researchers, and rancher and meat processing trade associations.

The program will produce embryos by in vitro fertilization that feature superior characteristics like high feed conversion, finishing quality, flavor and meat quality.

Three hundred-thousand cattle will be implanted with embryos from the program in 2015 alone, with 600,000 to follow in 2016 and 1 million or more in 2017. This should lead to an additional 300,000 metric tons of beef added to domestic production in 2017, allowing Brazil to surpass the U.S. that year in the amount of beef it produces annually, Marfrig executives predict.

Marfrig's beef from the program will receive a seal of “Softness Guaranteed,” and pass through all of the company's quality and traceability controls, said Marcos Molina, president of Marfrig's board of directors. 

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