Pará cattle traceability program delayed until 2030

The Pecuária Sustentável (Sustainable Cattle Ranching) program in Pará, Brazil, faces significant criticism following a decision to delay individual cattle and buffalo identification deadlines until December 31, 2030. The decree, signed by former governor Helder Barbalho, was issued just 29 days before the original deadline for animals moved for slaughter, sale, or export was set to expire.

Launched in late 2023, the initiative aimed to implement individual traceability through microchipped ear tags to decouple the supply chain from illegal deforestation and slave labor in the Amazon. The original schedule required all moved animals to be identified by the end of 2025.

Critics, including Mauro Lucio Costa, president of the cattle breeders’ association Acripará, argue the delay undermines the program's viability. Because cattle typically complete their commercial cycle in approximately two and a half years, the extended timeline may allow multiple generations of livestock to be raised and slaughtered before the traceability requirements take effect.