Feedlot capacity lifts Australia grain-fed beef exports

Australian grain-fed beef exports have increased, as feedlot numbers rise on the back of favourable weather conditions increasing cattle herd numbers.

The portion of grain-fed shipments in Australian beef exports of 1.08mn t in 2023 was 35pc after reaching a peak of 42pc in 2022 and up from 11pc in 2012, according to the Department Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry.

Grain-fed beef exports have increased by 18pc from a year earlier, helping to achieve an 8pc lift in 2023 grain-fed total meat shipments, according to Meat and Livestock Australia senior market analyst Erin Lukey.

The increase in grain-fed beef exports has been largely driven by increased feedlot capacity. Feedlot capacity totalled 1.27mn head for October-December 2012, rising by 25pc to 1.59mn for the same period in 2023. Cattle feedlot utilisation rates increased to 81.2pc in the final quarter of 2023, driven by a fifth consecutive lift in feedlot capacity, according to the Australian Lot Feeders' Association.

Cattle on feed rose to a new high of 1.29mn head for October-December 2023 from 1.26mn in the previous quarter, with increases in New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia but falls in Queensland and Victoria states.

Cattle buyers faced limited supplies of feeder cattle in Queensland during October-December 2023, driven by a change to wet weather increasing cattle retention from producers. This fall saw feeder steer prices rise from a low of 222A¢/kg on 26 October 2023 to 387A¢/kg on 8 February this year.

By Jessica Clarke