Beef exports hit a record in 2025, with volumes reaching over 1.5 million tonnes. Total beef exports rose to 1,545,784 tonnes – up 15% compared to 2024. Grassfed exports rose 13% year-on-year (YoY) to 1,096,456 tonnes. Grainfed exports rose 20% YoY to 449,292 tonnes. Both figures are calendar year records.

Australia has officially broken the record for the highest volume of beef exported in a calendar year, with year-to-date exports reaching 1.398 million tonnes, up 15% year-on-year.

With under a month still to run in the calendar, 2025 has already seen a new benchmark for Australian red meat exports. Beef exports have reached a record high and are on track to exceed 1.5 million tonnes. It will also be the second-largest year on record for sheepmeat exports (behind only 2023 and 2024), a record year for goatmeat exports, a record for total red meat exports, and the largest live cattle export in five years.

Lamb exports fell 4% from January last year to 24,177 tonnes. Despite the decline, January 2025 export numbers still reached the second largest on record for January. This is broadly in line with the high slaughter volumes seen towards the end of 2024.

An increase in eastern states cattle slaughter was reflected in rising export volumes last month, with beef shipments for April reaching more than 88,000 tonnes, up 32% year-on-year.

It was another strong year for Australian lamb exports in 2016-17. Volumes reached almost 240,100 tonnes shipped weight (swt) for the fiscal year – just 1% short of the record shipped in 2015-16. Taking a longer term comparison, however, 2016-17 sits 11% above the five-year average (DAWR). The proportion of...

Australian beef exports in March totalled more than 90,000 tonnes shipped weight – almost identical to shipments in the same month the year prior, and a 6% lift from beef exports in February.