Kazakhstanis eat the most sheep (8.5 kilograms per person per year).
The top ranked country, China, accounted for 29.5 % of sheep and goat meat consumption in the world.
Mongolia, Turkmenistan, New Zealand, Iceland and Greece are the countries where the biggest eaters of sheep and goats live. An average Mongolian eats nearly 50 kg of sheep and goat meat a year, according to Faostat. Central Europeans are on the other end of the scale hardly eating more than 0.5 kg a year per capita.
Australia's love of lamb has been shared with the rest of the world for decades for its buttery flavour and delicate texture, whether it's sliced medium-rare for a light salad, slow-cooked in a Massaman curry or sous vide for a butter-soft backstrap.
“Australia currently has three times as many sheep as New Zealand, though their ratio is only around three sheep to every Aussie,” Attewell said.
Safety and quality of life are essential factors to consider when choosing between Australia and New Zealand. Both countries have low crime rates and high quality of life, with Australia ranked as one of the safest countries in the world, while New Zealand is considered one of the most peaceful countries.
There are several other countries that have a large number of sheep as well. Behind China sets Australia. Australia has approximately 75 million sheep living within its borders. India also has a lot of sheep.
New Zealand lamb are smaller than American, strictly grass-fed, and tend to have a more pronounced, lamb-like “gamey or grassy” flavor. Australian lamb is grass fed and finished, but some farmers are moving to a practice of grain finishing on feedlots, so the flavor is similar to American lamb.
Per person consumption
When compared with its major export partners, Australia's meat consumption closely matches the United States (Figure 2). In both countries poultry is the most consumed meat at over 40 kg per person.
Many social commentators believe the drive to eat more lamb came from the excess production of sheep's wool for export, notably to China and Turkey.
Lamb is seen as a warming food in Chinese culture and helps people in the north ride out the country's cold winters.
Foods that are not permitted are called “Haram.” For a meat to be certified “halal,” it cannot be a forbidden cut (such as meat from hindquarters) or animal (such as pork). Beef, lamb, chicken, fish, venison, and game birds can all be halal. The only prohibited animals are pigs and reptiles.
Western Australia (WA) produces some of the finest lamb, mutton and wool in the world and exports to over 100 countries.
Lamb was once considered a staple of the Kiwi diet, but has been quietly and quickly disappearing from our dinner plates. New Zealanders are now consuming less lamb per capita than countries like Tanzania, Malaysia and Bangladesh, and only slightly more than India, where about a third of people are vegetarian.
Slaughter: Lambs
The majority of sheep killed in Australia are lambs, slaughtered around 6 – 8 months of age. Sheep can naturally live up to 20 years, with a typical lifespan of 10-12 years. Every year an average of 22.72 million lambs are slaughtered.
In Australia, around 97% of cattle is grass fed thanks to our plentiful grazing pastures. Many steak aficionados prefer the taste of grass-fed beef as it tends to be more flavoursome and has a classic “meaty” profile.
Approximately 97% of Australia's cattle are Grass-Fed and raised exclusively on pasture lands, meaning they feed on only naturally occurring grass throughout their entire life and not re-seeded or commercially grown / sprayed grass which is quite common here in the United States.
Australian beef is highly regarded for its exceptional quality and is one of the largest beef exporters globally. From world-class steaks to Aussie beef jerky, the farming culture, practices and exceptional land and air quality help to produce some of the best beef in the world.
Lamb that is raised on a diet of grass have a more intense pastoral flavor than those raised on a diet of grain. Lamb from Australia and New Zealand is pasture fed on mixed grasses and American raised lamb is first fed a diet of grass but finishes on grain.
Prime lamb producers are predominately located in the Riverina, the wheat-sheep zone of NSW, the Victorian and NSW Murray region and the high rainfall areas in south-west Victoria and eastern South Australia. Sheep are primarily located in south-west WA, south western part of Victoria and the southern part of NSW.
Beef from Canada is not. But Australian lamb and beef are 100% guaranteed to be Halal. The Australian and New Zealand Meat industry caters to the needs of the different cultures and these overseas packers produce halal meat guaranteed to adhere to Islamic laws.
Sheep numbers have been falling in New South Wales – Australia's largest sheep state – and in Western Australia, but rising in Victoria, Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia, according to the analysis by Meat & Livestock Australia.
Central Queensland
Central Queensland comprises the major rural centres of Emerald, Gayndah, Moranbah, Rockhampton and Taroom – where beef cattle is the major livestock enterprise in the region. The region recorded an average rolling one-year median price per hectare growth rate of seven percent per quarter in 2021.
More than 99% of all sheep exported from Australia left from WA ports last year, and while numbers are up slightly out of the east coast this year, Fremantle still makes up a vast majority of the trade.