We like to keep across the beef sector and supply chain, because at the end of the day, what’s happening in the real economy creates the need, the conditions and the opportunities for sensible technology solutions.

Here are some highlights from recent media:

1. China’s demand for Australian beef has surged this year. According to recently released data, Australian exports in 2018 are set to reach record levels. For further details see https://www.beefcentral.com/trade/china-on-track-for-record-australian-beef-import-year/. This is taking place against overall growth in Chinese beef imports (https://www.drovers.com/article/beef-consumption-and-growing-beef-imports-china).
2. Under these market conditions, it’s not surprising that beef prices have been strong in the China market (https://www.beefcentral.com/trade/beef-prices-in-china-hit-record-highs/).
3. Recent academic research on China’s own beef production sector points to a long-run decline in the nation’s beef production levels, especially relative to demand growth. As prices have risen, more domestic cattle have been sent to slaughter, including a rising proportion of females. This impacts long-run herd growth drivers.
   The paper can be accessed here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6039324/pdf/ajas-31-7-984.pdf.
4. Online sales are pivotal to the recent patterns of Chinese “consumption upgrading” and industry observers are optimistic that Australian beef is well-positioned to take advantage of this dynamic (https://www.beefcentral.com/trade/australian-red-meat-well-positioned-to-ride-chinas-e-commerce-boom/). BeefLedger is already in discussions with two quality niche players, focused on the discernible upper middle class market segment. Our focus on consumer-ready packaging solutions is aimed at supporting this market.
5. But it’s not just the China market that is changing dynamics. The underlying impetus expected to drive beef demand is the growth in the world’s middle class … https://www.beefcentral.com/trade/worlds-growing-middle-class-has-big-implications-for-beef/ … BeefLedger is well-positioned to reach across a number of these markets over the next 18 months.

Recent analysis of international cost competitiveness of beef processing sectors shows Australia to be amongst the most expensive. One area of interest to BeefLedger is in credentialing, which is presently a significant cost disadvantage for the Australian sector. Digitalization holds potential but needs to be implemented with proper design and thought. Streamlined transactions and reduced friction are key value propositions for a Blockchain-enabled ecosystem. This is exactly what we are working towards as part of a co-funded initiative with Food Agility CRC and researchers from Queensland University of Technology. On international comparisons of processing costs, see https://www.beefcentral.com/processing/cost-to-operate-analysis-exposes-alarming-lack-of-competitiveness-in-australian-processing/. The table below shows comparative certification-related costs for processors.