August 14, 2013
Australia's meat exports to Middle East and North Africa rise
Australia's beef and lamb exports to the Middle East and North African (MENA) region continue to increase at a value of US$1.1 billion in 2012.
Australian beef exports to the MENA region have risen from 7,094 tonnes in 2003 to 32,737 tonnes in 2012. A record tonnage is also predicted for 2013. Saudi Arabia's strong demand has been the catalyst for growth, as a bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE)-related ban on Brazilian beef in late 2012 resulted in a gap in the market, which opened up an opportunity for Australian beef.
During the past five years, Australian beef exports to Saudi Arabia have averaged 4,256 tonnes. However, for the first four months of 2013, Australian exports totalled 9,223 tonnes, breaking previous records and up more than eight-fold on-year.
Saudi Arabia, which has traditionally been a large sheep meat market, has become Australia's largest Middle Eastern beef market in 2013, which underscores the impacts of restrictions placed on Brazil and the US.
Sheep meat exports have also surged this year, led by strong growth in lamb exports to Bahrain and Iran. Australian lamb exports to Bahrain totalled 9,713 tonnes in 2012-13, up from 229 tonnes in 2011-12. Exports to Iran, although sporadic, reached 7,317 tonnes in 2012-13, up more than two-fold on-year, while shipments to Kuwait increased 77%, to 3,833 tonnes.
Australia's largest lamb market remains the UAE, which accounts for 25% of Australian exports. Jordan (20%) has also ordered large amounts of Australian lamb.
