Figures from the Ministry of Agriculture show that in January and February wholesale beef prices rose over 11 per cent compared to the same period in 2018. Importers have been stepping in to profit.
China's farmers haven't been able to keep pace with the growth. Up until 2017 beef farms were usually small-scale operations, with only 2 per cent sending more than 1,000 head of cattle to market annually. These farmers have been discouraged from expanding by rising costs for land, labour and fodder.
Since 2015, South America has been gradually becoming an important source of China's beef imports. Figures show that in 2013 Australia provided half of China's beef imports, but by 2017, 70 per cent came from South America.
In just three years, from 2015 to 2018, Brazil's exports of beef to China jumped from 56,000 tonnes to 320,000 tonnes. In 2018, 50 per cent of the beef exported by Uruguay and Argentina ended up on Chinese tables. China has now become the most important buyer for South American beef.
South America, China's main supplier of imported beef, has incurred huge environmental costs. Data from the World Resources Institute shows that beef production is the biggest driver of deforestation. Vast expanses of Amazon rainforest have been felled to make way for pastures. In Brazil alone, three quarters of deforestation is directly or indirectly linked to livestock farming. Brazil now has over 209 million head of cattle, and 20 per cent of the beef it produces is exported.
Research recently published in Nature says that if current levels of red meat consumption and processed foods continue as population levels rise, the environmental effects of the food system could increase by up to 90 per cent by 2050, beyond the planet's ability to cope.