November 14, 2006

Australian beef output rises 1.1 percent for third quarter

Beef production in Australia, rose 1.1 percent in the 2006 third quarter to an estimate in trend terms of 535,731 tonnes from the second quarter, to be up 5.0 percent from the third quarter of 2005, the government's Bureau of Statistics reported Tuesday (Nov 14).

The total number of cattle slaughtered, excluding calves, in the 2006 third quarter rose 0.5 percent to 1.96 million beasts, to be up 3.7 percent on year, it reported.

Australia exports about two-thirds of its beef production, mostly to the US, Japan and South Korea, with the level of exports closely tied to production.

In the 2006 third quarter, the number of live cattle exported rose 4 percent to 189,000 beasts from the second quarter, while the gross value of these exports rose 12 percent to AUS$128 million (US$98 million) and the unit value rose 7 percent to AUS$680.43/beast (US$521.1), it reported.

In the 2006 third quarter, the number of live sheep exported rose 57 percent to 1.2 million from the second quarter, while the gross value of these exports rose 65 percent to AUS$83.6 million (US$64 million) and the unit value rose 5 percent to AUS$71.68/sheep (US$54.9), it reported.

 Australian meat production 
 (trend estimate, tonnes, carcass weight)

              (Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics)