澳大利亚红肉出口商面临诸多挑战，地缘政治动荡、运费上涨、市场准入规则持续更新，同时海外供应商竞争日趋激烈。

尽管近年接连遭遇各类扰动，物流服务商仍抱有信心：行业自身的适应能力，持续巩固澳大利亚作为优质肉类可靠供应国的声誉。

在澳大利亚肉类与畜牧业协会（MLA）近期一期《实地见闻》播客节目中，CT货运全国生鲜品类经理克里斯蒂安·托马斯分享了货运网络幕后情况，正是这套网络将澳洲牛肉与羊肉输送至全球客户手中。

对克里斯蒂安而言，物流是毕生深耕的事业。CT货运由其父克莱夫·托马斯于1981年创立，企业从主营进口业务，逐步发展为澳大利亚顶尖生鲜出口专业服务商之一。

按国际航空运输协会（IATA）航空出口吨位统计，CT货运是澳大利亚排名第一的货运代理，生鲜货物占其出口货量的绝大部分。

克里斯蒂安从业已有25年，亲眼见证货运业务与红肉供应链发生巨大变革。但少有事件能像近期中东冲突这般，如此考验行业的抗风险能力。

这场冲突给澳大利亚冷鲜肉类出口商带来直接难题，尤其依赖空运进入中东核心市场的企业受到冲击。

克里斯蒂安表示，本次运力中断让人联想到新冠疫情时期的不确定性，当时运输网络几乎一夜之间陷入瘫痪。

“我们大量冷鲜肉类出口贸易目的地就是中东，”他说道。

“当下的局面和疫情期间很相似：航班一夜之间全部停航。”

该影响十分突出，澳大利亚约90%的出口空运货物搭载在客机腹舱，而非专用全货机。

“短短几天内，阿联酋航空、卡塔尔航空、阿提哈德航空从每日多班航班，直接变为零航班，”克里斯蒂安介绍。

受冲击的行业远不止红肉产业。

中东航司承担澳大利亚多种出口货品的运输重任，涵盖生鲜农产品、药品以及普通货物，因此本次运力中断波及众多行业。

尽管运力骤然缺失，克里斯蒂安表示澳大利亚出口商与物流服务商迅速行动，搭建替代运输线路。

海湾地区各大机场陷入运营扰动期间，经由沙特吉达及其他区域枢纽的新通道保障了贸易正常流转。

近几个月局势趋于平稳，空运可靠性也逐步恢复。

“有那么几个月，我们每天都要看新闻，关注夜间突发变化，”克里斯蒂安说道。

“但如今冲突整体趋于缓和，空运业务的稳定性正在回归。”

虽然运输服务稳定性有所改善，但运费仍处于高位。

主要推手之一是冲突爆发后大幅上涨的燃油价格。

“燃油价格暴涨，而燃油是航空公司最主要的成本构成之一。”克里斯蒂安表示。

燃油成本走高叠加运力缩减，带来巨大的涨价压力。部分运往中东和欧洲目的地的运费上涨至原来的三倍甚至四倍。

尽管价格已从峰值回落，但克里斯蒂安称，视具体目的地而定，部分运费水平仍约为冲突前的两倍。

此次影响并不局限于中东地区，东南亚货运线路运费同样大幅上涨，凸显全球航空网络相互关联的特性。

“这件事确实对全球运费价格造成了普遍性影响。”他说道。

对于冷鲜牛肉、羊肉出口商而言，物流不只是把货物从一地运往另一地，在整条供应链中保障产品品质至关重要。

货运临时改道至备选港口与机场，使得部分原本不承接大批量货物的地点出现拥堵。

货物从传统海湾枢纽分流后，阿曼、沙特的相关设施承受巨大压力。

尽管这类瓶颈问题已基本缓解，克里斯蒂安表示出口商仍持续关注目的市场的货物操作情况，尤其是冷鲜肉类贸易尚在发展的地区。

随着更多澳大利亚加工厂获得冷鲜羊肉对华出口资质，中国市场备受关注。

克里斯蒂安提到，羊肉价格上涨，叠加在冷冻肉长期占主导的市场搭建冷鲜供应链存在难度，市场对快速增长的预期有所降温。

“此前有不少讨论，认为会有大量空运冷鲜肉进入中国市场，”他说。

“但最终的实际情况并未如大家预想那样。”

相比之下，中东成熟冷鲜肉进口市场，在高价值生鲜货品的操作管理方面已积累丰富经验。

尽管运力中断、市场准入问题是近期讨论的焦点，但克里斯蒂安认为，国际竞争仍是澳大利亚出口商面临的最大挑战之一。

中东依旧是澳大利亚胴体肉与分割包装肉出口的关键市场，不过低成本供应商带来的竞争加剧，正在重塑市场格局。

“南非的产品价格更低、出货量更大，正在抢占中东大量市场份额。”他表示。

澳大利亚牲畜价格持续处于历史高位，出口商想要对标新兴供应商、维持自身竞争力，将是一项长期挑战。

展望未来，克里斯蒂安认为技术与数字化能够提升贸易效率。

虽然不少出口市场已支持电子卫生证书，但电子单证能否大规模推广，仍取决于进口国的认可与接纳。

在许多供应链当中，纸质文件依旧是硬性必备材料。

“有时航空公司会遗失部分单证，货物就会被扣压，直到我们再次出示原件。”克里斯蒂安说道。

进一步普及电子证书可以减少延误、提升供应链效率，不过他也提到，想要实现这一利好，离不开澳大利亚监管机构与进口国之间的协作配合。

尽管近期市场波动不断，克里斯蒂安依旧对前景保持乐观。

澳大利亚加工行业具备成熟完备的体系，加之行业优质、可靠的口碑，持续支撑海外出口市场的需求。

回顾二十余年行业从业经历，他表示澳大利亚肉类加工厂的变革令人印象深刻。

“加工厂的精细化水平与技术实力令人惊叹，”克里斯蒂安说道。

“我认为这正是澳大利亚在全球享有极高声誉的重要原因。

澳大利亚肉类享誉世界，拥有极佳的市场口碑。”

克里斯蒂安表示，CT货运始终愿意为遭遇物流难题、或是计划将产品拓展至全球市场的澳大利亚出口商提供支持。

在全球环境充满不确定性的背景下，这份行业声誉，再加上应变能力不断增强的物流行业，或将成为澳大利亚最大的竞争优势。

消息来源：MLA

Australia's red meat exporters face no shortage of challenges, from geopolitical instability and rising freight costs, to evolving market access conditions and growing competition from overseas suppliers.

Despite the disruptions in recent years, logistics providers remain confident that the industry's adaptability continues to underpin Australia's reputation as a reliable supplier of premium meat products.

Speaking on a recent episode of MLA’s On the Ground podcast, C.T. Freight National Perishables Manager, Christian Thomas, offered a behind-the-scenes perspective on the freight networks that keep Australian beef and lamb moving to customers around the world.

For Christian, logistics has been a lifelong pursuit. C.T. Freight was founded by his father Clive Thomas in 1981 and has evolved from an import-focused business into one of Australia's leading specialists in perishable exports.

C.T. Freight is Australia's No.1 IATA-ranked freight forwarder for airfreight export tonnage with perishables accounting for the majority of its export volume.

Having spent 25 years in the industry himself, Christian has witnessed dramatic changes in both freight operations and the red meat supply chain, but few events have tested the sector's resilience as much as the recent conflict in the Middle East.

Air freight disruption exposes vulnerabilities

The conflict created immediate challenges for Australia's chilled meat exporters, particularly those reliant on air freight services into key Middle Eastern markets.

Christian described the disruption as a reminder of the uncertainty seen during COVID-19 when transport networks were interrupted almost overnight.

"A lot of the trade we do with chilled meat is into the Middle East," he said.

"What we saw was a very COVID-like reminder where all of a sudden flights stopped overnight."

The impact was significant as approximately 90% of Australia's export air freight travels in the cargo holds of passenger aircraft rather than dedicated freighters.

"Within a couple of days, we went from Emirates, Qatar and Etihad all operating multiple flights per day, to zero," Christian said.

The challenge extended well beyond red meat.

Middle Eastern airlines play a critical role in moving Australian exports ranging from fresh produce and pharmaceuticals to general freight, which meant disruptions were felt across numerous industries.

Finding new pathways

Despite the sudden loss of capacity, Christian said Australian exporters and logistics providers moved quickly to establish alternative routes.

New pathways through destinations such as Jeddah in Saudi Arabia and other regional hubs helped maintain trade flows while airports across the Gulf region faced disruptions.

As conditions stabilised in recent months, reliability has steadily returned.

"There were a couple of months there where we were watching the news every day to see what was happening overnight,” Christian said.

“But now that things have settled down in terms of conflict overall, the reliability piece is coming back to air freight."

The cost burden remains

While service reliability is improving, freight costs remain elevated.

One of the biggest drivers has been fuel prices, which surged following the outbreak of conflict.

"The price of fuel just skyrocketed and that's one of the biggest cost bases for airlines," Christian said.

The combination of higher fuel costs and reduced capacity created substantial pricing pressure. In some cases, freight rates into Middle Eastern and European destinations tripled or even quadrupled.

Although prices have eased from their peak, Christian said some freight rates remain roughly double pre-conflict levels depending on destination.

The impact has not been confined to only the Middle East. South-East Asian freight routes also experienced significant increases, highlighting the interconnected nature of global aviation networks.

"It really has had a global effect on pricing," he said.

Chilled exports present unique challenges

For exporters of chilled beef and lamb, logistics is about more than simply moving product from one destination to another. Maintaining product integrity throughout the supply chain is critical.

The sudden diversion of freight through alternative ports and airports created congestion in some locations not accustomed to handling such volumes.

Facilities in Oman and Saudi Arabia experienced heavy pressure as freight was redirected away from traditional Gulf gateways.

While those bottlenecks have largely eased, Christian said exporters continue to monitor how products are handled in destination markets, particularly where chilled meat trade is still developing.

China remains one market attracting close attention following expanded approval for chilled sheepmeat exports from additional Australian processing plants.

Christian noted that expectations for rapid growth have been tempered by rising lamb prices and the challenges of developing chilled supply chains in a market where frozen product has traditionally dominated.

"There was a lot of talk about big volumes of air freight going into China," he said.

"It probably didn't eventuate like people thought."

By comparison, established chilled meat destinations in the Middle East have developed extensive experience managing high-value fresh product.

Competition intensifies

While freight disruptions and market access issues have dominated recent discussions, Christian believed international competition remained one of the most significant challenges facing Australian exporters.

The Middle East continues to be a crucial destination for Australian carcase and boxed meat exports, but increased competition from lower-cost suppliers is reshaping the market.

"South Africa seems to be doing product much cheaper and at higher volumes, just taking a lot of market share throughout the Middle East," he said.

As Australian livestock prices remain historically strong, maintaining competitiveness against emerging suppliers will remain an ongoing challenge for exporters.

Technology offers opportunities

Looking ahead, Christian saw technology and digitisation as areas capable of improving trade efficiency.

While electronic health certificates were already possible for many export markets, widespread adoption continued to depend on importing countries recognising and accepting digital documentation.

Physical paperwork remains a critical requirement in many supply chains.

"There are certain times where an airline might lose some documents and that product might be held until we can present the originals again," Christian said.

Greater acceptance of electronic certification could reduce delays and improve supply chain efficiency, although he noted cooperation between Australian regulators and importing nations would be necessary to unlock those benefits.

Confidence remains

Despite recent volatility, Christian remained optimistic about the future.

The sophistication of Australia's processing sector, combined with the industry's reputation for quality and reliability, continued to support demand in export markets.

Reflecting on two decades in the industry, he said the transformation of Australian processing facilities had been remarkable.

"The level of sophistication and technology – it's unbelievable," Christian said.

"I think that's been part of the success for how Australia keeps such a strong reputation globally.

“The product is world-renowned and really does have the best reputation in the world."

Christian said C.T. Freight was always happy to support Australian exporters facing logistics challenges or looking to expand their products into global markets.

For exporters navigating an uncertain global environment, that reputation, combined with an increasingly adaptable logistics sector, may remain Australia's greatest competitive advantage.

Source：MLA