What Australia's 2024/25 livestock data means for grazing land

Australia's beef cattle herd shrank in 2024/25. That is the headline from new data released this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, which puts the national beef herd at 27.6 million head at 30 June 2025, down 2.6 per cent from the year prior. High slaughter rates driven by strong international demand drove that contraction, and the enterprise value data released alongside it provides important context.

The herd declined not because beef farming lost its appeal, but because the enterprise was performing well enough that producers chose to sell. The local value of cattle disposals reached $17.1 billion nationally in 2024/25, up 33.7 per cent on the prior year, driven by strong international demand and domestic prices sitting near historic highs. Fewer cattle on the ground, but significantly more value per beast sold. The same dynamic played out in the sheep sector, where the local value of sheep and lamb disposals rose 37.7 per cent nationally to $5.1 billion, underpinned by tight supply and strong processor competition that pushed prices to record levels across much of the year.

Across both cattle and sheep, Australian grazing enterprises generated substantially more revenue in 2024/25 than in any recent comparable period. That enterprise performance is the foundation on which grazing land values are built, and the state-by-state picture shows just how directly the connection runs.

Queensland is the standout cattle story. The state carries 13.5 million beef cattle, the largest herd of any state, and was the only major state to record growth in 2024/25, up 0.7 per cent. Producers adding to or holding their cattle numbers are signalling confidence in the enterprise going forward. Grazing land values in Queensland sit at $8,540 per hectare in 2025, up 10.25 per cent over the year. The relatively lower dollar-per-hectare figure compared to southern states reflects the scale of Queensland's grazing properties rather than any lack of productivity, with large landholdings carrying significant cattle numbers across extensive country.

New South Wales saw the steepest cattle herd decline of any state, down 7.1 per cent to 5.5 million head, with dry conditions across key grazing regions driving that reduction. Grazing land values eased 2.93 per cent to $11,048 per hectare in 2025. Despite the herd contraction, NSW sheep and lamb disposals reached $1.48 billion, up 47.2 per cent, a result that reflects just how strongly the sheep price cycle ran through mixed grazing country during the year. Victoria followed a similar path on cattle, with the herd down 9.2 per cent and land values softening 0.25 per cent to $17,989 per hectare, while sheep disposal values there rose 28.9 per cent to $2.41 billion, the largest sheep enterprise value of any state.