India set to grow meat presence globally

India is poised for a bigger presence in the global meat market, a senior executive of the Allana Group, the largest producer of halal bovine meat in the world, told delegates of the World Meat Congress in Bejiing.

India is the largest bovine producer in the world with huge reserves of buffalo meat, according to Nasser Ghulam Hamid Shaikh, vice-president of the Allana Group.

He said India is now exporting to 65 countries around the world, and with beef production declining around the world, there is increased scope for India to play a greater role. He said the Allana Group is also keen to export buffalo meat to China.

Richard Brown, director with market analysts Gira, said India offers a low-cost alternative to traditional beef supplies for some markets. “India is poised to emerge as the biggest producer and exporter of bovine meat in the years to come,” he said.

According to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), India is the second largest beef exporter in the world after Brazil. USDA also forecasts that India will export 1.9 million tonnes of beef in 2014, adding that growing demand for India’s beef will offset the declining production in Europe and Australia.

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda) said India’s beef exports totalled 14.5 million tonnes and valued on US$4.4 billion last year. Southeast Asian and Middle East countries are the major markets for India’s beef.