a day ago
Australian lambs fetch record prices as export demand surges
Australian farmers are getting record prices for their lambs as demand from overseas nations soars.
Records tumbled at saleyards across the nation this week, including at Wagga Wagga, where a pen of 131 cross-bred lambs sold for $424 per head.
The lambs were sold by Sam Phillips from Yarrawonga Pastoral, who was in disbelief.
"It was unbelievable. We really didn't expect them to do that," he said.
At Griffith on Friday, heavy lambs reached up to $431 per head, which at the time of publishing was the new national record.
According to Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), the national price indicators for heavy lambs, trade lambs and light lambs are all at record highs.
Speaking to the Country Hour, veteran livestock agent Ron Rutledge said the money on offer to farmers, especially those dealing with drought, was "phenomenal".
"There's long-term agents in the industry that haven't seen prices like this, it's just amazing," he said.
Wagga-based livestock agent Peter Cabot echoed the sentiment.
"We haven't seen anything like it, the lamb market is as dear as it has ever been," he said.
"And it's not just those extra heavy lambs making over $400, it's any lambs that are fat and presented well that are selling extremely well."
Normally when there is a drought and producers are forced to sell, prices can plummet.
But the current supply of lambs is not keeping up with demand from processors.
"The demand is there and the supply can't fulfil it," Forbes-based agent Jack Rix told Landline.
"The dry weather down south in Victoria, South Australia and southern NSW has forced a lot of people to sell and because the processing market has been strong, there's not a lot left."
Australia exported a record amount of lamb in 2024 with nearly 360,000 tonnes, and according to MLA, export numbers this year are tracking slightly higher — up 2 per cent.
Despite Donald Trump's tariffs, the United States is still the biggest customer for Australian lamb, followed by China, which granted access to several extra Australian abattoirs in April.
Papau New Guinea is also emerging as a major customer.
Livestock agent Peter Cabot expected prices to remain strong throughout winter.
"I just can't see how it can come back too much at this stage," he said.
National livestock reporting service veteran Richard Bailey said it was not just the export market paying big dollars to secure Australian lamb.
"I don't think [prices] have changed much in the supermarkets yet, but I'd think it'll have to at some stage," he said.
"Both of the major supermarkets are paying premium prices for their type of lamb, so it's got to filter through [to the consumer].
While Australian farmers were celebrating getting over $10 a kilogram for their lambs this week, consumers in New South Wales were paying roughly $45 a kilogram for lamb cutlets.
If several Senate inquiries in 2024 showed anything, it is that supermarkets sometimes raise prices whether commodity prices go up or down.
