Jakarta. Indonesia on Monday nudged Brazil into investing in its cattle breeding as Jakarta tries to bring down beef prices and strengthen food security.

Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi told her Brazilian counterpart Mauro Vieira that such cooperation in animal husbandry could strengthen Indonesia-Brazil’s economic ties. 

“We encourage Brazil to invest in cattle breeding in Indonesia,” Retno told reporters shortly after the bilateral meeting at her office in Jakarta. 

Jakarta also tried to persuade Brazil to establish a joint vaccine production for foot-and-mouth disease, a viral disease that infects cattle, among others. Retno added that food security should become a priority in Indonesia-Brazil relations.

Vieira did not explicitly comment on the cattle breeding investment nor the joint vaccine production during the presser. However, the Brazilian diplomat said that his country would back Indonesia’s efforts in building national food security. 

“As a reliable food stock supplier, I highlighted the potential that Brazil offers to extend exports of meats to Indonesia,” Vieira told the same press conference.

Importing Brazilian Cattle
Earlier this year, Chief Investment Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan flew to Brazil in an attempt to diversify Indonesia’s meat suppliers.

According to Luhut, Brazil had agreed to not only export beef to Indonesia but also live cattle such as bulls and calves to be bred in the Southeast Asian country. Luhut said the Brazilian cattle would undergo quarantine to make sure the imported livestock is safe from foot-and-mouth disease.

“We have always imported beef from Australia and buffalo meat from India. This causes the [meat] prices to exceed Rp 100,000 [approximately $6.37]. If we import from these three sources [Australia, India, Brazil], we should be able to push [meat] prices down to below Rp 100,000,” Luhut said in a recorded video statement uploaded in August.

The National Statistics Agency (BPS) reported that Indonesia imported 225,650 tons of meat (beef and buffalo meat) in 2022. As many as 105,756 tons came from Australia. Followed by India (77,515 tons) and the US (20,106 tons). 

According to agri-foods data firm Tridge, the Brazilian government revealed that its country’s exports of beef had hit record highs in both value and volume. Brazil’s exports of fresh/chilled beef stood at $11.8 billion in 2022, with its volume totaling almost 2 million tons. 

Government data shows Indonesia-Brazil trade has gone up from $4.1 billion in 2021 to $5.4 billion the following year.

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