A June 2024 cattle auction in Brazil has lately crowned Viatina-19 as the world’s most expensive cow, worth 21 million reais (4.3 million). 

A hardy snow-white cow, Viatina-19 FIV Mara Movéis fetched $1.44 million for a partial share at a Sâo Paulo auction. 

The 2,400-pound cow boasts triple ownership but only one entity sold its share. This means that its total worth is over $4.3 million, a Guinness World Record.

But the amount Viatina-19 earned was no gamble, as its original owners had to pay top dollar to own her. One of the owners is Agropecuåaria Napemo (Napemo Agriculture), which contributed $800,000 for a stake in her during a 2022 auction. Another bidder later paid 7 million reais ($1.33 million) and prompted the first ‘most expensive” Guinness World Record for the cow. 

The previous most expensive cow had a third of Viatina-19’s current value, a telling factor about breeding choices.  

Noble Nelore Breed

Over 80% of Brazil’s cattle stock are India-originating zebus with handsome compact bodies, mild humps and drooping neck folds. Out of this subspecies comes the Nelore breed, which makes up the majority of Brazil’s meat stock.

Nelore bulls usually surpass other oxen in weight at between 1,764 and 2,425 pounds while cows average 992 to 1,213 pounds.

A descendant of a Nelore breed bull that reached  Brazil’s shores from India in 1963, Viatina-19 is an exceptional Nelore.

On the weight front, this record breaker is double the weight of her breed at 2,400 pounds, hence the moniker of “supercow.”

And “supercow” she is for her embryos and surrogate clones cost $250,000 apiece for those who want to perpetuate her generation.

Viatina-19 even won a “Miss South America” crown at Fort Worth, Texas where oxen and cows compete for looks. 

Beef Lead

As meat-producing zebus win on all fronts, Brazil still leads beef exports and ranks second in beef production globally.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the country led the world in beef exports in 2023. 

USDA further forecasts that Brazil’s beef exports will remain stable at 3 million tonnes in 2024.

As the following statistics show, there is as much to the story of Brazil’s cattle industry as there is in Viatina-19.

Brazil Cattle Statistics

According to USDA, Brazil had 194,365,000 heads of cattle in 2023,  which might shrink to 193,900,000 in 2024. Of these, 38,960,000 were dairy cattle, 55,280,000 beef cattle and 48,000,000 calves, in 2023.  Only India, with 307,500,000 heads, had more cattle than Brazil in 2023.  While the highest in the world, beef exports in Brazil (at 3.35 million tonnes in 2023) are only 30% of production. Indeed, consumption at home reached 7.3 billion kg (7.3 million tonnes) in 2022.

Are there native cattle breeds in Brazil? 

Though 80% of cattle in Brazil are the heat-tolerant imported zebus, Brazil has several native breeds. They include taurine breeds such as Canchim, Caracu, Guzerá, Indu-Brasil, Girolando and Mocho Nacional. The most predominant breed in Brazil, however is the non-native Nelore, which makes up 90% of the zebu population. One of these is the celebrated Viatina-19.