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India moves fast in exports of livestock products. Though the figures show fluctuating trends, there are strong indications on the forward growth of export potentials of livestock products. As the internal production of milk, meat and poultry grows substantially every year, Indian exports too are on the rise. The total exports recorded a whopping 62% growth during the last three financial years. And buffalo meat covered 89 % of the total exports during 2014-15 and India stands tall as the largest exporter country.

India started exporting of meat in the year 1969. India has
earned an enviable reputation through these years. And now India is regarded as a reliable exporter and its products uuare considered risk-free, lean, nutritious and are competitively priced. Not even a single incidence of livestock or poultry disease outbreak was reported in any of the 64 countries through importing of Indian meat.

India’s milk production is estimated at 140 million tonnes during 2014-15. And it grows around 6 million tonnes every year and currently contributes 16.43% of global milk production. and it has the largest population of milking/meat producing animals in the world with 190.90 million cattle, 108.70 million buffaloes, 135 million goats and 65 million sheep. India also accounts for 4.95%  of global egg production.

With such a large livestock wealth, India produces enough milk to cater to its population of 1.22 billion people to have a per-capita consumption of 300 gms per day. And India is leading the list of developing countries with high per-capita consumption of milk. And now, the export figures suggest India’s growing potentials on the export front too.

meat-export-beef_small_032315070056Indian meat exports: India is considered as world’s 5th largest meat producer with 6.3 million tonnes which account for 3% of world meat production of 220 million tonnes. But per capita meat consumption in India is around 5 kg as against the world average of 47 kg. Buffaloes and cattle equally and together account for 62% of India’s meat production. Sheep, goat, pig and poultry account for 5%, 10%, 10%, 13% respectively.

Export of livestock & poultry products

Export of livestock and poultry products

2012-132013-142014-15
Quantity (MT)Value (₹ Cr.)Quantity (MT)Value (₹ Cr.)Quantity (MT)Value (₹ Cr.)
Buffalo meat1107506.2417412.891449758.6426457.861475526.0129282.58
Poultry products577864.24494.93437673.53565.87556698.80651.19
Dairy products87824.191412.10159228.513318.5766424.341205.40
Sheep & Goat meat16046.91425.6622608.95694.1223611.55828.11
Caseins13650.79556.2611461.71636.938168.05428.53
Albumins (Egg & Milk)1663.8290.162025.32131.642125.02161.19
Processed meat796.939.37488.786.92406.1114.20
Animal casings602.5418.37352.2128.46260.1519.33
Other meat194.142.33255.253.23261.922.67
Total20422.0731843.6032593.20

Indian exports recorded a 24% growth in April 2014 but shipments declined during May and June thus turning the export growth to only 10%. The change could be attributed to the market fears as Narendra Modi government took office in May 2014. Slowly the exports rose to 16% in the first two quarters and livestock products export became a ₹5 billion business surpassing the export of Basmati rice.

iStock_000012470041MediumThe support from the Government helps boosting the meat industry. A grant of up to Rs 15 crore is still offered to set up new abattoirs or modernize existing ones. New players enter the field and India Mart, an online B2B marketplace has seen by the 20 % increase in registration of meat exporters.  Indian meat is gaining preference in global markets as it is 20% cheaper than Brazilian meat.

The cost of rearing of animals in Brazil is higher as they are meant for slaughtering alone. In India, the water buffaloes are reared and used as milch animals and sent for slaughtering once they are considered unproductive. The popularity of Indian beef among Middle East and other Muslim countries is on a higher side as the importers are assured of Halal slaughter.

India-beef-exportsIndia is now finding new markets even in developed western countries. Till recently, the main markets for India’s exports were South East Asia, Africa and Middle East. During 2014-15, India exported livestock products worth ₹32593 cr. ($5.01 bn) of which buffalo meat accounted for ₹29282 cr. ($4.5 bn).

During the same period, the Indian exports of sheep and goat meat fetched ₹828 cr. (4127 mn) and poultry products earned ₹ 651 cr. ($99.8 mn). While processed meat and other meat products collectively earned ₹16.87 cr ($2.60 mn), dairy products worth ₹1205 cr. ($12.054 bn) were exported.


Beef11Buffalo meat:
 Beef exports from India more than trebled from around 0.6 million tonnes to over 2 million tonnes between 2009 and 2014.  The export value more than quadrupled from $ 1,163.54 in 2009-10 (April-March) to $ 4,781.18 million in 2014-15. India’s buffalo meat exports have been growing at an average of nearly 14 per cent each year since 2011.

According to Department of Animal husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, India produced 14.3 lakh tons of beef of which 11 lakh tons are from buffalo-meat and 3.3 lakh tons are from cattle.

World beef production:

MapAccording to Agriculture & Processed food products Export Development Authority, India (APEDA) figures, India is the largest exporter of buffalo meat (termed ‘beef’ in US) followed by Brazil, Australia and US. These four countries together are exporting more than 1 million metric tons of beef in 2015.  India and Brazil are projected to account for roughly 43% of the world’s beef exports.

1443732530-6031There are variations in the production figures and export data and do not tally at all. As per APEDA reports, 1475526 metric tons of buffalo meat was exported during the financial year 2014-15. But US Department of Agriculture figures show that 2082000 metric tons of beef was exported by India in FY 2014. (Financial Year of US starts on 1 October and ends on 30 September).

According to USDA, a total exports of 9.7 million tons of beef and veal were exported globally during FY 2015. India alone exported 2.4 million tons which account for 24.74 % of the global beef exports.The difference in export figures point to the possible illegal export of meat to the tune of ₹10000 cr to ₹15000 cr every year as alleged by Sanjeev Balyan, the Minister of State for Agriculture, Government of India. Cows are allegedly slaughtered illegally in India. Plans are afoot to set up laboratories at all Indian ports to test the meat exported. This move gains significance especially in the context of rows of cow slaughter in India.

India account for 58% of world’s buffalo population with 108 million. There are around 3600 slaughter houses and modern abattoirs. Besides thirteen 100% export oriented units there are twenty four other meat processing plants in the country. The states of Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Punjab are the major buffalo-meat production areas. Vietnam Social Republic ($ 2,152.86 million), Malaysia ($ 422.94 million), Egypt Arab Republic ($ 422.34 million), Thailand  ($ 393.40 million) and Saudi Arabia ($ 259.01 million) are the major export destinations during 2014-15.


Sheep-Meat
Sheep & Goat meat: India produced 13.8 lakh tons of mutton (9.4 lakh tons from goat and 4.4 lakh tons from sheep) in 2012-13. During 2014-15, India exported 23,611.55 metric tons of sheep & goat meat worth of ₹ 828.11 cr. India’s sheep and goat population is largely concentrated in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir and hilly regions of North and Eastern Himalays.

Indian exports of sheep and goat meat are negligible compared to that of beef. (Australia and New Zealand are the world’s principal lamb and mutton exporters. APEDA website showed grave factual errors on the status of Indian exports). The sheep and goat meat exported from India are of three forms as chilled / frozen carcasses, frozen boneless (pieces/cubes), frozen with Bone (pieces/cubes). Kolkatha, Chennai and Mumbai are the major goat & sheep meat export zones. The major export destinations are the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman.

RabbitsOther meat: Meat of swine, rabbits, horse, camel etc. fall into this category. The Indian exports are relatively very small as ₹828 cr. (2014-15). The pork or pig meat production of India was slightly over 4.5 lakh tonnes in 2012-13. China exported 55.62 million metric tons of pork in 2013 followed by European Union with 22.39 million tons and the United states of america with 10.53 million tons. China is also the largest producer of rabbit meat, constituting about 40% of global production. European and other Asian countries as Thailand and Vietnam are also in the producers list.

The world production of rabbit meat is valued to be about 1 million tons, of this the 54% is produced in the EU. The four biggest world’s producers – China , Italy , Spain , France – contribute to almost ¾ of the world production. India has exported 261.92 MT of meat (other than beef and mutton) to the world worth of ₹2.67 cr. during the year 2014-15. Bhutan, Nepal, Angola, Bahrain and France were the major export destinations.

ProcessedMeat900-850x567Processed meat:  Though in smaller quantity, products as corned buffalo meat sausages, canned meat, homogenized meat preparations, preserved meats, other poultry meat,  preserved meat of bovines,  meat extracts, meat juices etc. are also exported from India. Only 40-50% of India’s meat processing capacity of over 1 million tons per year is utilized. More than ten state-of-art mechanized abattoirs-cum-meat processing plants have already been established in various states based on slaughtering buffaloes and sheep.

Meat-cum-bone meal, tallow, bone chips and other value-added products are some of the slaughterhouse byproducts. The plants strictly adhere to the sanitary and phyto-sanitary measures required by the World Organization for Animal Health (O.I.E.). The key production areas are West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh , Uttar Pradesh, Rajastan, West Bengal , Maharashtra , Kerala and New Delhi. India has exported 406.11 MT of processed meat worth of ₹14.21 cr. in 2014-15. Zaire, Seychelles, Vietnam Social Republic, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Korea Republic are the major export destinations in 2014-15. Out of the eleven animal casing plants approved by APEDA in India, eight are located in Uttar Pradesh, two in Andhra Pradesh and one in New Delhi.

Animal CasingsAnimal Casings: Animal casings obtained from animal intestines are soft cylindrical containers used to contain sausage mixes. They can resist pressure produced on filling with sausages, permeable, can absorb smoke for added flavours, expand or shrink and can be closed at the ends by clipping or tying. Out of the eleven animal casings plants approved by APEDA, eight are located in Uttar Pradesh, two in Andhra Pradesh and one in New Delhi. India has exported 260.15 MT of Animal Casing products worth of ₹19.32 cr. during the year 2014-15. South Africa, Turkey, Portugal, Lebanon and Tunisia are the major export destinations.


Untitled-1Poultry products: 
 India is now the world’s fifth largest egg producer and the eighteenth largest producer of broilers. Poultry meat is the fastest growing component of global meat demand. According to Government of India reports, 26.8 lakh tons of poultry meat was produced in 2012-13. In addition to small poultry dressing units, there are five modern integrated poultry processing plants producing dressed chicken, chicken cut parts and other chicken products.

Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamilnadu, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Orissa are the major poultry hubs. India exported 5,56,698 metric tons of poultry products worth 651 cr. during 2014-15. Oman, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Japan and Indonesia are major export destinations.

The export of poultry products is expected to receive a boost as the European Union has lifted the ban it imposed five years ago.  The ban was imposed on Indian poultry products after the bird flu outbreak in India. EU accounts for 20-25% of the poultry products export of India.

bl12_bmpur_brandli_1208107fDairy products: India far ahead of US, Pakistan, China and Brazil in milk production. Annual global trade in dairy ingredients is approximately 9 per cent of total milk production.  Major dairy producing countries as New Zealand, Europe, United States, Belarus, Argentina, Australia and Uruguay handle 84% of global dairy products export. It is estimated that these countries together export 55 million tonnes annually. Their major exports include skimmed milk powder, whole milk powder, milk fat, cheese, whey powder and fluid milk.

The major dairy products exported from India are butter, butter exports_fig9_eoil, butter milk, cheese, milk & cream powder, ghee and skimmed milk powder. States as Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Tamilnadu and Rajastan are the major centres of dairy products manufacturing.production. In 2012-13, India exported 87,824.21 metric tons of dairy products. The largest item of export from India during this period was skimmed milk powder accounting for nearly 77% of net milk and milk products exports.

Bangladesh, Egypt, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Algeria were the major importing countries of dairy products from India. There was quantum jump in exports in 2013-14 to 159,228.51 metric tons but declined to 66,424.37 tonnes worth Rs 12.054 billion in 2014-15. United Arab Emirates, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Pakistan are the major export destinations during this period.

 

casein2Caseins:  Caseins making up 80% of the proteins in cow milk. Casein has 21 amino acids. It is largely used in cheese making, production of casein paints, glue, fibre for fabrics, protein supplements and medical & dental products. Export of casein was prohibited by the Government of India. The ban for export was lifted only in early 2012. India has exported 8,168.05 metric tons of casein worth of ₹428.58 cr. during the year 2014-15. United States, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Germany and Philippines are the major export destinations. The top exporters of casein are New Zealand, Netherlands, Ireland and France.


AlbuminAlbumins (Egg & Milk):  
India exports egg albumins (ovalbumins) and milk albumins (lactalbumins). India exported egg and milk albumins to Japan, Vietnam Social Republic, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. During 2014-15, India exported 2,125.02 metric tons of albumin worth of ₹161.18 cr. The major exporting countries of egg & milk albumin are US, Germany, Netherlands, New Zealand and Denmark. The US alone exported 30182 metric tons of egg & milk albumin worth $313 mn. Egg and milk albumins are widely used in industry. While egg albumins are used in prepared foods milk albumins are used in making varnishes and adhesives.

Forecast: The global production of beef and veal is expected at 59.2 million tons by 2016. Indian exports will account to 48% of its production. As the global demands grow, exports of India, Brazil and the US will rise by 3% to
9.9 million tons by 2016. India will stay the topper as the demand from South East Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.

GraphGlobal production of broiler meat is predicted to grow by 2% to touch 89.3 million tons by 2016. Brazil will continue to lead in production with 13.48 million tons followed by China. India’s production will grow to a spectacular 8% by next year. India will remain on the fourth place with an expected production of  4.8 million tons. Exports by major players as Brazil, the US and the EU will grow by 4% to reach 10.7 million tons.

The probable reasons for India’s dismal share in world trade (other than beef) are high domestic consumption, low productivity, prevalence of livestock and poultry diseases, poor market access,  quality & non-tariff issues from major exporter countries.