Australian agri-food exports have risen for the sixth consecutive year to total almost $46 billion.
But the rate of growth for our farm commodity export values is slowing, partly because of reduced supplies of beef available for sale overseas, says a report from Rural Bank and Rural Finance.
The inaugural report, launched by Rural Bank and Rural Finance’s specialist insights team Ag Answers, studied Australia’s agri-food trade performance across nine sectors – cattle and beef, crops, wool and cotton, sheep, milk and milk products, wine, horticulture, sugar and seafood.
Wine, horticulture, sugar and seafood achieved notable gains, but beef and cropping remain the powerhouses of the Australian agri-food export market.
They accounted for almost $22b worth of exported produce – 48 per cent of Australia’s total agri-food exports.
Beef also overtook cropping as the country’s most valuable export commodity, despite its volumes and values slipping as supplies tightened last year.
Andrew Marshall
Andrew Marshall is the group agribusiness writer for ACM's state agricultural weeklies and websites. He is a former editor at The Land and has worked in various Rural Press group roles in Canberra, North Richmond (NSW) and Toowoomba (Qld).
Andrew Marshall is the group agribusiness writer for ACM's state agricultural weeklies and websites. He is a former editor at The Land and has worked in various Rural Press group roles in Canberra, North Richmond (NSW) and Toowoomba (Qld).
