Putting beef on everyone’s plate

A stockman showing off the Nelore cow known as Viatina-19 at a farm in Uberaba. Viatina-19 is the product of years of efforts to raise meatier cows, and is the most expensive cow ever sold at auction, according to Guinness World Records. — AP

BRAZIL has hundreds of millions of cows, but one in particular is extraordinary. Her massive, snow-white body is watched over by security cameras, a veterinarian and an armed guard.

Worth US$4mil (RM17mil), Viatina-19 FIV Mara Movéis is the most expensive cow ever sold at auction, according to Guinness World Records. That’s three times more than the last recordholder’s price. And – at 1,100kg – she’s twice as heavy as an average adult of her breed.