Meat production in Australia
Australia: Meat production was 5.58 million tonnes in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
5.58 million tonnes
Change on year
up 10.3%
World rank
13th
of 202 countries
All-time high
5.58 million tonnes
in 2024
All-time low
1.40 million tonnes
in 1961
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Meat production in Australia, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
The most recent figure for meat production in Australia is 5.58 million tonnes, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
The figure is up 10.3% on the previous year and up 14.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, meat production in Australia peaked at 5.58 million tonnes in 2024 and was at its lowest, 1.40 million tonnes, in 1961.
Australia ranks 13th of 202 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Meat production in Australia, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 1.40 million tonnes | — |
| 1962 | 1.59 million tonnes | +13.3% |
| 1963 | 1.71 million tonnes | +7.8% |
| 1964 | 1.78 million tonnes | +4.1% |
| 1965 | 1.82 million tonnes | +2.5% |
| 1966 | 1.77 million tonnes | -3.0% |
| 1967 | 1.72 million tonnes | -3.1% |
| 1968 | 1.83 million tonnes | +6.6% |
| 1969 | 1.89 million tonnes | +3.6% |
| 1970 | 2.07 million tonnes | +9.3% |
| 1971 | 2.21 million tonnes | +6.9% |
| 1972 | 2.48 million tonnes | +12.3% |
| 1973 | 2.55 million tonnes | +2.8% |
| 1974 | 2.20 million tonnes | -13.9% |
| 1975 | 2.45 million tonnes | +11.1% |
| 1976 | 2.81 million tonnes | +15.0% |
| 1977 | 2.95 million tonnes | +4.8% |
| 1978 | 3.15 million tonnes | +6.9% |
| 1979 | 2.99 million tonnes | -5.2% |
| 1980 | 2.65 million tonnes | -11.1% |
| 1981 | 2.60 million tonnes | -1.9% |
| 1982 | 2.62 million tonnes | +0.8% |
| 1983 | 2.65 million tonnes | +1.0% |
| 1984 | 2.38 million tonnes | -10.0% |
| 1985 | 2.45 million tonnes | +2.9% |
| 1986 | 2.63 million tonnes | +7.0% |
| 1987 | 2.80 million tonnes | +6.6% |
| 1988 | 2.89 million tonnes | +3.1% |
| 1989 | 2.76 million tonnes | -4.3% |
| 1990 | 3.06 million tonnes | +10.8% |
| 1991 | 3.19 million tonnes | +4.1% |
| 1992 | 3.27 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 1993 | 3.30 million tonnes | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 3.34 million tonnes | +1.3% |
| 1995 | 3.30 million tonnes | -1.2% |
| 1996 | 3.19 million tonnes | -3.2% |
| 1997 | 3.34 million tonnes | +4.6% |
| 1998 | 3.60 million tonnes | +7.8% |
| 1999 | 3.64 million tonnes | +1.0% |
| 2000 | 3.71 million tonnes | +1.9% |
| 2001 | 3.85 million tonnes | +3.9% |
| 2002 | 3.90 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 2003 | 3.75 million tonnes | -3.6% |
| 2004 | 3.85 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2005 | 3.89 million tonnes | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 4.07 million tonnes | +4.6% |
| 2007 | 4.14 million tonnes | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 4.03 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 2009 | 3.99 million tonnes | -1.1% |
| 2010 | 4.05 million tonnes | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 4.09 million tonnes | +1.2% |
| 2012 | 4.20 million tonnes | +2.6% |
| 2013 | 4.54 million tonnes | +8.2% |
| 2014 | 4.88 million tonnes | +7.4% |
| 2015 | 4.97 million tonnes | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 4.70 million tonnes | -5.4% |
| 2017 | 4.46 million tonnes | -5.0% |
| 2018 | 4.77 million tonnes | +6.9% |
| 2019 | 4.87 million tonnes | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 4.55 million tonnes | -6.6% |
| 2021 | 4.42 million tonnes | -2.9% |
| 2022 | 4.49 million tonnes | +1.5% |
| 2023 | 5.06 million tonnes | +12.7% |
| 2024 | 5.58 million tonnes | +10.3% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 5.58 million tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 301,415 tonnes, 18.5× the median. (65 countries reporting)
- Australia's 5.58 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 166,924 tonnes, 33.4× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.72 million tonnes | 1.40 million tonnes | 1.89 million tonnes | 9 |
| 1970s | 2.59 million tonnes | 2.07 million tonnes | 3.15 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.64 million tonnes | 2.38 million tonnes | 2.89 million tonnes | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.32 million tonnes | 3.06 million tonnes | 3.64 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.92 million tonnes | 3.71 million tonnes | 4.14 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.55 million tonnes | 4.05 million tonnes | 4.97 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.82 million tonnes | 4.42 million tonnes | 5.58 million tonnes | 5 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More agriculture & rural data for Australia
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 13.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0227 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,476 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.5855 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.1228 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 2.3% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 2.3% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 1.7% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is meat production in Australia?
- Meat production in Australia was 5.58 million tonnes in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest meat production recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.58 million tonnes in 2024.
- What is the lowest meat production recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.40 million tonnes in 1961.
- How does Australia rank for meat production?
- Australia ranks 13th out of 202 countries with data for 2024.
- Is meat production rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Meat production. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Expressed in tonnes. Includes cattle, poultry, sheep/mutton, goat, pigmeat, and wild game.