US demand for Australian sheepmeat still soaring

America’s appetite for chilled and frozen Australian sheepmeat is skyrocketing, but WA is missing out on the boom. That’s according to the latest figures from the Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment, which reveal 3009 tonnes of Australian mutton was exported to the US last month, a 5 per cent increase on September and nearly triple the amount exported in October 2020. WA exported just 144 tonnes of mutton to the US last month, down 64 tonnes from September and 35 tonnes fewer than the same time last year. WA lamb exports to the US also fell from 691 tonnes in September to 474 tonnes in October, though the figure was up 141 tonnes compared to October last year. Australian lamb exports to the US also fell, by 517 tonnes, from September to October. Despite the confusing figures, WA Meat Marketing Co-operative chief executive Coll MacRury said US demand for WA sheepmeat — particularly lamb — was generally growing. “It’s definitely increasing, and particularly in retail,” he said. “Obviously, coming out of COVID, people haven’t been able to eat out as often as they normally do in North America, so we’re seeing a lot more home-cooked meals.” Mr MacRury said the US demand for Aussie lamb was being driven by health and animal welfare-conscious young adults. “Antibiotic free, natural, pasture-raised, grass-fed; that’s where the real focus is with our high quality lamb now and that’s where the market growth is going to be,” he said. “That’s where the future premiums are going to be in the industry, so we’ve all got to get our head around that and make sure that we can deliver to this market that’s going to demand that type of product going forward.” The growth in demand has coincided with a global container shortage, with WAMMCO forced to resort to trucking some frozen and chilled product thousands of kilometres to interstate ports before shipping to the US. But that does not account for the drop in WA sheepmeat exports to the US, with a DAWE spokesman confirming the department’s red meat export statistics do take into account state of origin. In other words, meat produced in WA would still be included in WA export statistics, even if it was transported interstate before being exported. Though he could not offer a definitive explanation, Thomas Elder Markets analyst Matthew Dalgleish said the figures may reflect WA’s geographical proximity to other markets coupled with global supply chain disruptions. “It may be a lot easier and more direct for the US to take it from the east coast of Australia,” he said. “From WA’s perspective, potentially your primary markets are tending to be more European or Middle Eastern, for example.” According to DAWE, Asia was the top importer of WA mutton in October followed by the Middle East, USA and Europe. Most WA lamb was exported to Asia, USA, the Middle East, Canada and Europe. “There’s definitely been an increase in demand out of the US for Australian product, and part of what’s driving it is the low supply; they’ve got very low cold stores of mutton and lamb at the moment,” Mr Dalgleish said. “They’ve got to get product in and there’s an awareness of problems with supply chains, so they’re going to the easiest and quickest (port), which would be to the east coast of Australia.” Australia is the world’s biggest exporter of sheepmeat, with October figures showing China was the top importer of both mutton and lamb, followed by the US, the Middle East, Europe, Canada and Japan. Mr Dalgleish said mutton flows from Australia to China tended to peak in November, but had increased 15 per cent to 6268 tonnes in October, up 15 per cent from September. Meanwhile, Australia’s total lamb exports declined to 19,726 in October, down 10 per cent from September and the lowest monthly volumes since the start of the year. Mr Dalgleish said lamb export volumes usually increased in spring as prices softened on the back of the spring flush. “Current volumes are nearly 4000 tonnes under the five-year average for October, or 16 per cent below the seasonal trend,” he said. “However, the two top trade destinations of the USA and China can’t be blamed as they have both come in bang on their October average.”