New Zealand to export sheep to Saudi Arabia for research

Pregnant ewes and lamb will be shipped by air freight, with some to be cross-bred with Awassi, a fat-tailed sheep breed found in Saudi Arabia.

New Zealand will export a research flock of sheep to Saudi Arabia this year under a breeding project aimed at bolstering the kingdom’s livestock supplies.

The country stopped worldwide exports of sheep for slaughter in 2003 but has been seeking to grow its export of the animal for breeding purposes more recently.

“We’ve just signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia to send a research flock later this year,” said Nathan Guy, the New Zealand minister for primary industries, during a visit to the GCC last week. “There will be a flock of research sheep going up to Saudi Arabia later this year. Commercial decisions have to be made on the numbers.”

Pregnant ewes and lamb will be shipped by air freight. Some will be cross-bred with Awassi, a fat-tailed sheep breed found in Saudi Arabia.

“We will monitor which breeds perform best in the climatic conditions here,” said Mr Guy.

Home to about 30 million sheep, New Zealand currently exports only about 400 of them every year for breeding. Saudi Arabia imports millions of cattle every year to keep up with meat demand from its rising middle class. An increasing number of the sheep imports are for breeding purposes as the kingdom seeks to reduce its reliance on exports in the longer term.

The New Zealand deal forms part of a US$6 million investment by that government in an agribusiness service centre in Dammam, eastern Saudi Arabia.

“The farm will be a model for vertical integration, from cropping to fresh meat supply to the local market,” said Mr Guy. “It will be a full showcase of New Zealand agritech including technical services, farming systems, animal health, on-farm equipment, genetics and farm expertise.”

The initiative is a cornerstone of New Zealand’s goal to deepen its agricultural export base.

“We will continue to add value to our food products,” said Mr Guy. “We can only feed about 40 million people, so what we will continue to do over time is export value-added goods and services.”

In a sign of growing food security links between New Zealand and the Middle East, Fonterra, a New Zealand dairy company, last week opened an ingredients warehouse in Jebel Ali, Dubai, to support growing demand for dairy products in the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia. The facility will act as a distribution hub for Fonterra.

New Zealand exported about NZ$1.6 billion (Dh4.97bn) in primary products to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman last year.

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