Queensland’s agricultural exports reached a record high of $12.51 billion in the last financial year, a 16.8% increase from the previous year, according to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data.
The ABS data has marked the second consecutive year of increasing exports, solidifying the agriculture industry’s status as a significant contributor to the State’s economy.
According to ABS data, the total export value of the State’s agriculture industry has increased by 25.16% during the previous five fiscal years.
“Queensland’s global reputation for clean, green and great-tasting produce is serving the state well, and this reputation is backed up by Queensland farmers every single day,” Minister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Furner said.
The record-breaking export levels were supported by strong prices and an increase in export volumes of 18.26% to 7.87 million tonnes.
The following commodities were identified as key growth commodities for 2022/23:
- Cereals and Cereal preparations up 53.64% to $2.54 billion.
- Chickpeas up 37.26% to $369.12 million.
- Live Cattle is up 53.94% to $147.96 million, with a 9.83% increase in export volume.
- Beef is up 11.05% to $6.28 billion, with volume up 7.38% to 598,765 tonnes.
Meanwhile, the horticulture sector recorded a 3.25% increase in fruit and vegetable export volume, with avocados being a notable exporter, increasing 38.5% and volume by 24.09%.
In 2022-23, Queensland’s top three agricultural trading partners were China ($2.73 billion), South Korea ($1.82 billion), and Japan ($1.71 billion).
“The Queensland Government will continue to back our farmers, and I’m certain our agricultural industries will continue to go from strength to strength,” Minister Furner said.
