he red hot demand for Australian beef that has helped hold cattle prices up against a backdrop of drought-induced offloading has led to a turning point, the release of new Federal Government export data shows.
Originally appearing in Farm Online
For the first time ever, China has taken the crown as Australia's largest beef market, volume-wise, over a calendar year, on the back of an incredible 84 per cent year-on-year lift.
China accounted for 300,132 tonnes of Australian beef shipped weight in 2019, the Department of Agriculture reported.
apan and the United States, traditionally Australia's largest markets, took 287,495t and 250,979t respectively.
Shipments to South Korea added up to 162,344t and Indonesia was also in the mix as a big player at 57,637t. Interestingly, Saudi Arabia took over 12000t, a 35pc lift.
Overall, beef exports for 2019 came in at over 1.2m tonnes, which puts the result in the top three figures of all time, according to Meat & Livestock Australia data.
