{"id":217262,"date":"2026-04-14T20:13:18","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T20:13:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/producer-advocates-for-donkey-meat-sales-its-not-due-to-the-crisis-its-a-productive-option-for-patagonia\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T20:13:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T20:13:20","slug":"producer-advocates-for-donkey-meat-sales-its-not-due-to-the-crisis-its-a-productive-option-for-patagonia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/producer-advocates-for-donkey-meat-sales-its-not-due-to-the-crisis-its-a-productive-option-for-patagonia\/","title":{"rendered":"Producer Advocates for Donkey Meat Sales: &#8216;It&#8217;s Not Due to the Crisis, It&#8217;s a Productive Option for Patagonia&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div>\n<div class=\"jwplayer-ctn\"><figcaption class=\"jwplayer-figcaption\">Donkey meat in Patagonia emerges as a productive alternative in the face of the decline in sheep and cattle farming in the region<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">In an exclusive interview with <b>Infobae in the Afternoon<\/b>, rural producer <b>Julio Cittadini<\/b> defended the commercialization of <b>donkey meat<\/b> in <b>Patagonia<\/b>, describing it as a productive alternative to traditional beef and sheep in areas where these farms are unviable.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">During his time on the program hosted by Manu Jove, Maia Jastreblansky, Paula Guardia Bourdin, Rosendo Grobo, and Lara L\u00f3pez Calvo, Cittadini explained: <b>\u201cIn the group, you can have any of the cuts that you mentioned because they are practically the same cuts as beef.\u201d<\/b> The Punta Tombo producer highlighted that donkey meat offers cuts such as beef, entrails, ribs, and loin, with a current price of around $7,500 per kilo.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"header headline-class-h2\" id=\"article-headline-la-propuesta-de-carne-de-burro-en-la-patagonia-y-su-impacto-en-el-consumo-local\">The Donkey Meat Proposal and Its Impact on Local Consumption<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">Cittadini noted that the project arose in response to the crisis in sheep production: <b>\u201cWe here in Patagonia have generally been a productive area for sheep, and due to various circumstances, that production is being lost.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<div class=\"visual__image\">\n<picture><source  media=\"(min-width: 1000px)\"\/><source  media=\"(min-width: 768px)\"\/><\/picture><figcaption class=\"article-figcaption-img\">Donkey meat is sold at $7,500 per kilo, positioning itself as an economical option compared to beef in Patagonia (Illustrative Image Infobae)<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">The producer clarified that many fields are no longer suitable for cattle farming and explained, <b>\u201cIn most of those fields closed to sheep production, cattle exploitation is not possible because the fields are unsuitable for that. That\u2019s where the donkey emerged as an alternative due to its resilient nature to thrive in the Patagonian steppe.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">The pilot project, authorized by the Ministry of Production and subject to bromatological controls, yielded immediate results: <b>\u201cWhat we estimated could last a week was sold out in a day and a half,\u201d<\/b> said Cittadini. A free tasting at a local grill was a hit, demonstrating a \u201cvery good reception from the local community.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"header headline-class-h2\" id=\"article-headline-barreras-culturales-y-antecedentes-internacionales-en-el-consumo-de-carne-de-burro\">Cultural Barriers and International Background in the Consumption of Donkey Meat<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">Cittadini acknowledged that the biggest hurdle is cultural: <b>\u201cBeyond the figure of the roast, the idea of donkey as food presents a barrier that Argentines need to overcome.\u201d<\/b> However, he added that in rural Patagonia, consuming non-traditional meats is not uncommon. He himself has consumed donkey meat for years, even though mass sales are a recent development.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">When discussing international precedents, Cittadini mentioned: <b>\u201cCountries like Italy and France consume it, not to mention the Chinese, who have specialized refrigerators for large quantities.\u201d<\/b> He emphasized that although donkey meat is not part of Argentine tradition, <b>\u201cit will likely become normalized, and while it may not appeal to everyone, many will consume it.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<div class=\"visual__image\">\n<picture><source  media=\"(min-width: 1000px)\"\/><img alt=\"The DonkeyLand sanctuary is home to around 500 rescued donkeys, many after accidents or attacks in the area. (Facebook\/Reche Canyon)\" class=\"global-image\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"low\" height=\"640\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Producer-Advocates-for-Donkey-Meat-Sales-Its-Not-Due-to.jpg\" width=\"960\"\/>\n<\/picture><figcaption class=\"article-figcaption-img\">Producer Julio Cittadini highlights that the cuts of donkey meat offer meat, entrails, ribs, and loin similar to beef (File)<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"header headline-class-h2\" id=\"article-headline-la-carne-de-burro-como-alternativa-economica-y-la-reaccion-social\">Donkey Meat as an Economic Alternative and Social Reaction<\/h2>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">Pricing is a crucial aspect, with Cittadini noting that donkey meat is sold at just $7,500 per kilo, a significant saving compared to beef prices. Addressing assumptions around the economic crisis, he stated: <b>\u201cI want to emphasize that this was not born out of a crisis situation, but rather it was born from a productive necessity coinciding with the current crisis.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph\">Regarding the social response, he downplayed concerns: <b>\u201cIn the area, we don\u2019t have any controversies surrounding this production. Rather, there\u2019s excitement and very good reception from the community.\u201d<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/category\/general\/\" rel=\"dofollow\">General News &#8211; 2<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Donkey meat in Patagonia emerges as a productive alternative in the face of the decline in sheep and cattle farming in the region In an exclusive interview with Infobae in the Afternoon, rural producer Julio Cittadini defended the commercialization of donkey meat in Patagonia, describing it as a productive alternative to traditional beef and sheep [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":217263,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[24023,201,4760,587,4868,4799,7547,9369,40612,3709],"class_list":["post-217262","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mazagine","tag-advocates","tag-crisis","tag-donkey","tag-due","tag-meat","tag-option","tag-patagonia","tag-producer","tag-productive","tag-sales"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217262","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=217262"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217262\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":217264,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217262\/revisions\/217264"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/217263"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=217262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=217262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/teknomers.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=217262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}