Livestock

Will 2025 be a record-breaking year for exports?

By McPherson Media Group

Nov 7, 2025

MLA predicts record-breaking beef and goat meat exports in 2025, with strong demand from Japan and the US. Photo: AAP.

Both beef and goat meat export records are likely to be broken in 2025, MLA says.

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Exports of Australian beef rose seven per cent from October 2024 figures to 139,278 tonnes.

This total is both the largest October on record and the second-largest month on record.

The United States remained the largest market over the month at 41,563 tonnes ‒ down eight per cent from October 2024.

Japan was the second-biggest market for the month, with exports rising 79 per cent year-on-year to 26,883 tonnes.

Beef inventory levels in Japan have been trending lower over the past few months.

This lack of domestic supply, coupled with strong demand in the Japanese market, has driven growth for Australian beef exports.

It is highly likely 2025 will be the largest year on record for beef exports.

Year-to-date exports currently sit at 1.27 million tonnes. With two months of the year remaining, that’s only 77,000 tonnes behind the 2024 calendar year total – the previous record.

Exports of lamb fell eight per cent to 24,667 tonnes in October, while mutton exports fell 33 per cent, mirroring the lower slaughter numbers seen over September and October in the National Livestock Reporting Service slaughter report.

Lamb exports to the US fell 13 per cent to 5779 tonnes, but it remains the month’s largest market. Exports to the United Arab Emirates fell 11 per cent to 2385 tonnes, but rises were seen in South Korea and the United Kingdom.

So far in 2025, Australia has exported 289,727 tonnes of lamb and 173,602 tonnes of mutton.

These figures are still well above historic norms, but mean 2025 is likely to be the second or third-largest year for Australian sheep meat exports.

A total of 5827 tonnes of goat meat was exported in October ‒ one per cent above October 2024 figures and the second-largest month on record.

Exports to the US lifted 14 per cent to 3232 tonnes, also rising in Korea (+15 per cent) and Canada (+93 per cent).

Exports to mainland China fell 67 per cent to 283 tonnes, but were still up from September’s 144 tonnes.

Over the first 10 months of the year, goat meat exports totalled 48,745 tonnes.

This is 16 per cent higher than the same period in 2024 and only 2744 tonnes below last year’s whole-year total.

As such, 2025 will likely be a record year for goat meat exports.