A review of the world sheepmeat market: overview of international trade

Abstract

The pattern of production, consumption and trade in sheepmeats has distinct characteristics. Whilst most countries have a domestic sheep industry, very few are actively involved in international trade. The trade has traditionally been dominated by exports from the southern hemisphere (N.Z., Australia and Argentina) to the northern hemisphere (mainly the U.K.). This pattern has changed markedly during the 1970's; the decade has seen an increase in both volume and value of trade; an increase in the number of countries involved in trade (reducing the dominance of the major traders); and a shift in the composition of trade away from mutton as a staple food towards high quality lamb, and away from live sheep to carcass meat trade. A long term decline in the major market, the U.K., has been offset by the steady expansion of markets in Japan, North America, the U.S.S.R. and other EEC member states, and the fortuitous and more dramatic appearance of a large market in the Middle East. At the same time there has been an increase in regulation of the market through, for example, Government contracts, controls on trading companies and the introduction of a common policy on sheepmeat in the EEC. The outlook is for a further increase in exports, mainly from N.Z., Australia and Eastern Europe. The downward trend in consumption in the traditional lamb-eating countries is likely to continue, whereas in low consumption countries the general expansion in demand can be expected to continue. Increasing self-sufficiency in the former group (as a result of higher domestic production and falling total consumption) should be offset by the growing import demand in the latter group, where consumption growth is projected to outstrip production.