The state of Mato Grosso, with the largest cattle herd in Brazil, has 801,000 T&P 4T of small-scale livestock farms.

The state with the largest cattle herd in Brazil, Mato Grosso, has its beef cattle industry sustained mainly by small rural properties. Data from the Mato Grosso Agricultural Defense Institute (Indea) shows that, of the 106,009 farms dedicated to raising beef cattle in the state, 85,005 have up to 320 hectares, equivalent to 80.1% of the total.

In addition to leading the national herd, beef cattle farming also accounts for the largest number of economic establishments in Mato Grosso, representing 9,36% of all registered companies. This sector surpasses traditional activities such as soybean cultivation, retail clothing sales, road freight transport, and civil construction.

The production chain also includes 12,583 medium-sized properties, representing 11.81% of the total, and 8,417 large farms, accounting for 7.91% of the total. Among the municipalities with the highest number of properties dedicated to raising beef cattle, Colniza leads the state ranking, with 3,762 registered farms. Next are Cáceres (3,218), Juína (2,485), Nova Bandeirantes (2,140), and Confresa (2,051).

According to Bruno de Jesus Andrade, Project Director at the Mato Grosso Institute of Meat (Imac), the data shows that the strength of the state's livestock industry goes far beyond the large business groups.

“When we observe that more than 901,000 livestock farms are small-scale, we realize that livestock farming in Mato Grosso is built by thousands of producers who generate income, jobs, and drive the local economy. This broad productive base is one of the factors that helps Mato Grosso maintain its leadership in beef production,” he states.

According to the Projects Director at Imac, the presence of this activity in practically all regions of the state strengthens the economy of the municipalities and expands the sector's growth capacity.

“We have a diversified production chain, present in all regions of the state and increasingly focused on productivity and technology. This set of factors has been fundamental in consolidating Mato Grosso as a world reference in animal protein production,” he adds.