Export opportunities on horizon for Australian cattle

The Australian cattle industry has a unique opportunity to feed growing international beef demand, if it can overcome labour shortages, threats from diseases, logistics constraints and geopolitical tensions, the BeefEx22 conference in Brisbane, Queensland was told.

Australian feedlots are well placed to deliver consistent beef product into the growing markets across Asia and particularly into the high-grade Chinese market, the chief executive of the Australian Lot Feeders Association (ALFA) Christian Mulders told the 600 delegates at BeefEx in a panel of high-level industry experts. The grain-fed industry, which already delivers more than 50pc of beef produced in Australia, will continue to grow and build more feedlots, said ALFA director and chair of Beef Australia Bryce Camm. It is working hard to overcome the headwinds of labor shortages, shipping schedules and trade tensions between Canberra and Beijing.

The meat processing industry has recovered from the shortage of containers that crippled exports during the peak of the Covid-19 lockdowns in 2020-21 but is still struggling to attract enough people, according to the chair of the Australian Meat Industry Council Terry Nolan. "We would not have the capacity to process a surge in cattle in the next 3-6 months," he said.

There is no immediate requirement to increase capacity, with kill numbers depressed by high cattle prices and fierce export beef competition from destocking in the drought-affected US. But once the drought ends in the US and the herd rebuild begins, demand for Australian beef will surge and processors will need to boost throughput, largely by resolving their worker shortage.

The Australian beef herd is the only one globally under expansion, putting it in a great position to increase exports in the next 3-5 years, according to the chief executive of AgriTrends Brett Stuart. The strong US dollar is also increasing the cost competitiveness of Australian beef in global markets.

The Australian export beef industry could also benefit from falling freight rates but will need to ensure sufficient refrigerated containers to meet demand quickly should the US reduce exports to rebuild its herd. It also needs to stay free of tropical diseases, such as Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) and Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), which are both major problems in Indonesia.

Australia should be able to keep out FMD with the right quarantine measures. But the wind-borne LSD could be difficult to repel, particularly if it travels through Indonesia and into Papua New Guinea or East Timor, said the chief executive of Consolidated Pastoral Company Troy Setter. The Australian industry needs to be prepared to contain LSD if it arrives, said Setter, who operates feedlots in Indonesia that he is working hard to keep disease free.

By Jo Clarke