June 16, 2009
More North American demand ups New Zealand beef exports by 10 percent
New Zealand (NZ) beef and veal exports increased 10 percent on-year during May to reach 44,328 tonnes slaughterweight (swt). Exports for the NZ production year to date (October 2008 to May 2009) reached 262,527 tonnes, 3 percent higher than 2007-2008.
The increase in export volumes was accounted for by the Canadian (5,438 tonnes swt) and US (20,905 tonnes) markets, where volumes rose 134 percent and 7 percent, respectively. Both these markets predominantly source manufactured beef from New Zealand, with the proportion of cow slaughter to total adult cattle slaughter in NZ (hence manufactured beef) having increased from 22 percent from October 2007 to April 2008 to 33 percent over the same period in 2008-09. NZ beef exports also rose to Taiwan, up 23 percent year-on-year to 2,545 tonnes swt (slaughterweight).
Exports during May declined to other markets such as Japan, down 27 percent to 2,720 tonnes, Korea back 13 percent to 2,586 tonnes, and Mexico where exports fell 55 percent to 101 tonnes swt.
