RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Focusing on the potential of Brazilian cattle breeding, the meatpacking giant JBS is investing R$1 million (US$200,000) in ‘Uboi’, an app that caters to small, medium and large-scale cattle breeders. The goal is to use the group’s fleet to transport third-party cattle, a highly specialized niche business with great demand in Brazil.
The volume of cattle slaughter in the country is around 35 million head per year. For each cattle slaughtered, at least two transports occur between fattening and final destination. Thus, the potential of this niche business is at least 70 million head transported per year.
The Uboi service may be hired initially by producers in the states of São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Goiás, and in the Araguaia Valley region of Mato Grosso. The goal is to expand the range in the coming months to other areas where JBS operates.
“Cattle producers will not only buy freight, they will also buy security,” says Ricardo Gelain, director of JBS Transportadora, in an interview with EXAME magazine.
According to Gelain, the company’s drivers – its own and outsourced – are trained in defensive driving. The fleet is renewed every three years and all trucks have telemetry systems, which allows remote data transmission.
Gelain adds that the vehicles are designed for animal welfare. For instance, the ramp is replaced by an elevator system, which reduces stress. Insurance may also be taken out in the event of an accident.
In Brazil, agribusiness largely depends on unpaved roads, in addition to very heavy rainfall periods, which worsen the road conditions. “This is a private transport model in the country. We identified this market and invested in fleet telemetry to improve safety.”
Another point that can make Uboi competitive is the fleet management according to the distribution of the group’s operations around the country. “We monitor the fleet’s displacement from five to seven days in advance and work to prevent the truck from running empty.”
Adding together its own fleet of 600 trucks and the outsourced trucks, the Uboi app will provide 3,000 vehicles for cattle transportation.
Gelain states that the app is intuitive and that, in three screens, the freight can be ordered. For the more traditional cattle farmers, with little familiarity with technology, the company also provides assistance by telephone.
With no targets for the time being, Uboi should continue expanding its offer to other regions in Brazil. “We are entering an extremely widespread segment, we want to understand this market, so we do not have clear targets yet. We want to professionalize the cattle transport in the country.”
Source: Exame