In this second story on where Australian lamb ended up last year, fridayfeedback looks the major export destinations for our seven most popular cuts of the lamb carcase.
An analysis of the export data for the main cuts of Australian lamb over the course of 2011 reveals the varying tastes between our major markets.
The Chinese love Australian breast/flap and manufacturing lamb, Americans have a taste for our leg and shoulder, and the Emirati (UAE) take in our carcases.
In 2011, Australian industry exported approximately 160,067 tonnes swt of Australian lamb worth $1.1 billion.
The largest single cut exported was breast and flap, with 32,010 tonnes swt exported to the top 20 destinations led by China who bought almost half of it.
Lamb legs were popular in countries that love their roasts, with the United States and United Kingdom taking in around 59 percent of the 31,965 tonnes swt exported to our top 20.
The United States was also the largest destination for our lamb shoulder, with a total of more than 25,160 tonnes swt exported across the top 20 larger markets.
Around 18,595 tonnes swt of carcases were exported last year, most of them to the Middle East with the United Arab Emirates taking 8,088 tonnes swt.
Top three export destinations for lamb cuts
Breast and flap
•China – 15,369 tonnes swt
•Papua New Guinea – 8,059 tonnes swt
•Hong Kong – 3,427 tonnes swt
Leg
•United States – 12,973 tonnes swt
•United Kingdom – 5,908 tonnes swt
•United Arab Emirates – 1,840 tonnes swt
Shoulder
•United States – 5,941 tonnes swt
•Japan – 3,378 tonnes swt
•Malaysia – 3,317 tonnes swt
Carcase
•United Arab Emirates – 8,088 tonnes swt
•Qatar – 2,722 tonnes swt
•Jordan – 1,847 tonnes swt
Manufacturing
•China – 4,504 tonnes swt
•Japan – 2,580 tonnes swt
•Hong Kong – 1,773 tonnes swt
Rack
•United States – 5,383 tonnes swt
•United Arab Emirates – 646 tonnes swt
•Canada – 586 tonnes swt
Source: MLA.com
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