en.Wedoany.com Reported - In the week ending July 11, Uruguay slaughtered a total of 46,711 cattle, an increase of 1,500 head from the previous week and more than 5,500 head higher than the same period last year. This weekly slaughter volume marked the highest level in eight weeks and the largest since the completion of the final window of Quota No. 481 in mid-May.

The weekly increase was primarily driven by the heifer category. A total of 7,847 heifers were slaughtered that week, a 43% increase month-over-month, the highest level since the first week of February this year. Cow slaughter reached 16,745 head, up 4%, while steer slaughter totaled 21,379 head, down 7%.

The most active processing plants that week were: MBRF-Tacuarembó (5,634 head), Las Piedras (5,414 head), and Minerva-BPU (3,716 head). Starting this week, Tacuarembó has scheduled one shift for vacation, with weekly activity expected to drop to approximately 2,500 to 3,000 head. Meanwhile, Establecimiento Colonia, under the same group, resumed production, slaughtering 1,783 cattle that week.

Cumulative slaughter volume for July to date is roughly on par with the same period last year, despite having one additional working day this year. Various indicators suggest that the refrigeration processing industry's activity this month is likely to consolidate the recovery trend that began to emerge in June, albeit with a still weak recovery pace in June. All signs point to higher industry activity levels in the second half of the year compared to last year.