BRAZIL: Clamour for convenience to drive food growth - study

Demand for "value-added" convenience food is set to be a central factor in the buoyant growth forecast for the Brazilian food sector from industry analysts BMI.

In US dollar terms, food consumption is set to soar by over 75% in Brazil by 2013 compared to the level seen in 2008, BMI has claimed.

While overall houselhold consumption in Brazil is set to slow due to the global recession, consumers will start to trade up to more branded and "premium products", BMI said in its latest report on the country's food and drink sector.

With working lifestyles set to increasingly "mirror" those in the developed world, and with Brazil's population expected to grow by more than 6% by 2013, food consumption is forecast to soar.

"Despite significant increases in agricultural production, Brazil still has more unused commercially viable agricultural land than any other country in the world, offering opportunities for both incumbent and new producers," BMI noted.

"The fundamentals of the Brazilian economy are viewed as strong and the country is expected to bounce back quickly once the global economy starts to recover. This means that food consumption per capita is still forecast to grow rapidly over the next five years, even if the indicator registers a moderate dip over the next 12 months."

The likes of Nestle and Wal-Mart have been busy expanding their operations in Brazil, while there looks set to be the creation of a major new domestic food player with the imminent merger of Perdigao and Sadia.

Neverthless, investment in Brazil is being closely monitored by NGOs, with beef giant JBS recently at the centre of allegations from Greenpeace.

The green campaigners claimed JBS would not join a moratorium on the purchase of cattle from farms involved in new deforestation in the Amazon.

Last week, JBS defended its record on sourcing cattle and stood by its sustainability efforts.