UK red meat exports increase by 10% to £966m in first half of 2025
5th September 2025
The UK red meat exports in the first half of 2025 were worth £966 million, marking an almost 10% increase.
Jonathan Eckley, AHDB international trade development director, said that a wide portfolio of markets in both EU and non-EU destinations was key in helping drive export growth.
While tight cattle supplies were reflected in the total volume of beef exports – easing by nearly 9% on the year – higher prices pushed the value of beef exports, including offal, to the EU up by 19% to £323 million.
Mr Eckley said: “Despite tight supply, it was encouraging to see a 2% increase in fresh and frozen beef shipments to France, which is a key market for UK exporters and the only market where AHDB has a full-time team working closely with the beef and lamp supply chain to promote our world-class product.
“The value of fresh and frozen shipments to non-EU markets like Canada, Ghana and Japan also highlights diversity of markets, which is pivotal in terms of carcass balance and maximising opportunities for exports in as many markets as possible.”
Global appetite for British meat
The latest figures from HMRC also highlighted a 5% increase in the volume of pig meat exports, driven by more products being shipped to China, the UK’s biggest export market for pig meat.
The importance of carcass balance was again illustrated in the pig meat sector, with offal shipments up nearly 7% on the year to 75,000 tonnes. The popularity of quality British sausages also shone, with their export value seeing a 16.5% increase on the year, worth just over £9 million.
The AHDB expert added: “The volume of pig meat shipments to China again underlined the value of our in-market representative Holly Chen working tirelessly on the ground to support our levy payers’ ambitions in that particular market.”
Total sheep meat exports, including offal, for the period increased 18% in volume at 47,462 tonnes and 15% in value (£347 million), with shipments to non-EU markets up 29% in volume (3,142 tonnes) and 43% in value (£12.5 million).
Mr Eckley concluded: “We are delighted with the figures in the first half of 2025, demonstrating a strong performance for our red meat exports as a whole. It highlights the global appetite for our world-class red meat products and how important connecting with people is in the industry.
READ MORE: Chicken prices drive meat and poultry inflation in August
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