Red meat to continue export boom

Red meat exports are expected to continue their boom throughout the year, while Australian producers will need to keep a close eye on Brazil.

Red meat exports are expected to continue their boom throughout the year, with the outlook “excellent” according to Ripley Atkinson, the Australian livestock and commodities manager for financial services business StoneX.

“We’ve probably surprised ourselves on how much product we’ve moved so far, and every month it just seems to be getting better,” he told The Australian Ag Podcast.

“The May figures were nearly 114,000 tonnes, and were the highest since 2019 in December when we were at the bottom of that drought, and it’s been the best May month since 2015.

“I’m optimistic about markets having the capacity to take our product. We export to over a hundred countries and I think the diversity is one of the real benefits to the beef industry.”

StoneX Australian livestock and commodities manager Ripley Atkinson.

Mr Atkinson said the industry should keep an eye on Brazil, and how their moves to become disease free could impact Australia’s exports.

“There’s no denying Brazil’s advancements in that space. To get into one of our most important and influential markets in Japan, with whom we’ve had such a fantastic relationship with for the last 50 years, that is something for Australians to keep an eye on,” he said.

“(Brazil) has a significantly cheaper cost of production than us, their labour costs are lower and they can produce more of it faster … but our diversity and market access is excellent, and that should assist us.”

Mr Atkinson said while Australian cattle herd numbers were increasing, prices were typically sitting anywhere from 10 to 76 cents a kilo liveweight below 10-year averages.

While there were some promising global adjustments that would make a difference to prices, he did not expect prices to get anywhere near the “heady days of 2022”.

“There may be some support for those prices in 2025 to 2026, but certainly from now until the back end of this year prices are going to remain under a little bit of pressure from supply,” he said.

The Australian Ag Podcast is sponsored by Nutrien Ag Solutions, and you can listen to this week’s full episode with Ripley Atkinson here, on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.