Meat and Livestock Australia reserves swell by 60pc following $30m levy boost
Australia's red meat industry has achieved unprecedented growth, with MLA's retained earnings surging 60 per cent to $82.5m amid soaring exports.
A bigger turnoff of cattle has contributed to a $30m boost in levies collected by Meat and Livestock Australia in the past financial year.
The 10.6 per cent lift has helped swell retained earnings for the nation’s red meat research and development body to $82.5m, up almost 60 per cent year-on-year.
The figures form part of MLA’s recently released annual report, which shows the major expenditure in the organisation’s $282.2m budget was in international markets, with an outlay of $42.1m.
Other big ticket spending was on-farm productivity ($39.1m), work in the domestic market ($24.5m), integrity systems ($32.5m), environmental sustainability ($23.2m) and producer adoption ($21.6m).
MLA chairman John Lloyd said the red meat industry had exported record volumes in 2024 and the trend was continuing this year.
“In the 2024-2025 financial year, Australia exported 2.37 million tonnes of red meat to 103 markets, representing the largest volume of red meat we’ve ever exported,” Mr Lloyd said. This included 1.44 million tonnes of beef, 363,109 tonnes of lamb, 256,104 tonnes of mutton and 55,486 tonnes of goat meat.
This added to the domestic market which consumed over 554,000 tonnes of red meat in the past financial year, worth $13.6bn.
“These results demonstrate the industry’s commitment to quality, sustainability and innovation, as well as the strength of our trade relationships,” Mr Lloyd said.
MLA will hold its annual general meeting in Adelaide, South Australia, on November 20.
