From the MD’s desk

There have been plenty of challenges and uncertainty in the livestock sector this year. Markets and weather dominating so much of the commentary.  While we are aware of the challenges and supporting the industry as best as we can, at Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA), we’ve also been busy telling Australian red meat’s good news story to industry and consumers, here and overseas. I wanted to quickly share with you what we’ve been up to this year and some personal highlights as I sign off as Managing Director at Christmas.

The past three years of stellar growing conditions led to a surge in confidence within our sector. We saw record saleyard prices for cattle and sheep, and we felt relief following years of devastating drought and bushfires.

In 2023 however, we’ve seen a change in conditions including a massive increase in supply of cattle, sheep and goats and a declaration of El Niño in September.

November 2023

National animal welfare standards consistent with those applying to imported Australian-bred cattle have been announced in Vietnam as part of the Australia-Vietnam Beef Cattle Symposium. This is the result of years of work by Australian beef cattle exporters, led by MLA, and represents the potential of the live export trade in improving animal welfare standards with other nations.

October 2023

Australia’s per capita beef and lamb consumption continues to be one of the largest in the world.

Australian consumption of lamb was about 6.8kg in 2022, with the global average being 1.8kg, while the per capita consumption of beef was about 23.7kg in 2022, with the global average being 6.3kg.

August 2023

There has been significant commentary in recent weeks about the difference between our industry pursuing a ‘climate neutral’ goal compared to a ‘carbon neutral’ goal. The reality for Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is that both goals work together, with climate neutral being a significant milestone on the road to being carbon neutral.

July 2023

This year is very different year to 2022, especially in the cattle market. In 2022 the herd rebuild was very much alive as Northern Australia received its first above-average wet season since 2016. As we move through 2023, the herd rebuild is stabilising as paddocks become more heavily stocked and the weather normalises.

July 2023

A few years ago, few people had heard of Asparagopsis. But today, this red seaweed is becoming a well-known innovation that is showing significant promise for its ability to reduce methane emissions for the livestock sector.

May 2023

The A-UK FTA, which was agreed in principle in June 2021 and signed on 17 December 2021, will see Australian beef, sheepmeat and goatmeat access to the UK liberalised over a transition period of 10 years.

April 2023
When we talk about affordability, it is also incredibly important to have a conversation about value. First off, red meat is a very high-quality product. It’s consistent and reliable.

March 2023

Eating meat has been a feature of a nutritious meal across the globe throughout time.

February 2023

If you want an example of an industry that is improving the environment and providing highly nutritious food to the world, then check out red meat.

December 2022

On the 30th of November in Toowoomba, Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) had the pleasant opportunity to speak directly with producers at our annual MLA Updates showcase.

November 2022

This week, world leaders and policy makers are meeting at the COP27 summit.

October 2022

For the Australian red meat and livestock sector, COP27 is an opportunity to showcase our impressive work into realising our vision to be carbon neutral by 2030, or what Meat & Livestock Australia calls CN30.

October 2022

Foot and mouth disease (FMD) has always been on the radar of the Australian livestock industry.

September 2022

In August 2022, a group of us from Australia’s livestock industries saw and inspected the rigid biosecurity checks and precautions being taken at our nation’s international airports.

August 2022

Foot and mouth disease (FMD), lumpy skin disease (LSD), African swine fever (ASF) and other threats have been long-term risks that we have successfully managed.

July 2022

Australia is currently free from both FMD and LSD, and our priority is to keep it that way. At the same time, while we are confident in Australia’s strong biosecurity measures, we aren’t taking anything for granted.

June 2022

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA), within our feedlot program has a large R&D focus on preventative, diagnostic and extension measures for minimising the impact of bovine respiratory disease (BRD).

April 2022

A key part of MLA’s Strategic Plan is driving research and development projects to help the red meat industry achieve its goal to be carbon neutral by 2030 (CN30).

March 2022

Meat & Livestock Australia is committed to working with producers around Australia to achieve our industry’s target of doubling the value of red meat sale by 2030.

January 2022

The Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement (A-UK FTA) will allow for tariff-free access for a huge range of goods, with some ‘sensitive’ Australian products subject to expanding volume quotas, prior to eliminating the barriers completely over various time frames.