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Rabbits
History of Australian Rabbit Production
An introduced pest species, rabbits have been harvested from the wild since shortly after their introduction and establishment in the mid-1800s. However following the release of the rabbit calicivirus virus in 1996 the numbers of rabbits in the wild fell drastically, constricting the wild rabbit harvesting industry. Since then regulations in many states have been changed and the farming of rabbits is now allowed everywhere except in Queensland and the Northern Territory. Most Australian commercial rabbit products now come from farmed rabbits
(Source: ‘Emerging Animal and Plant Industries – their value to Australia’; Foster, Jahan and Smith; RIRDC Publication Number 05/154. ‘Distribution Of Meat Products From Prospective Australian Animal Industries’, Bodger and Goulding, RIRDC Publication Number 03/023)
Products
Rabbits are farmed primarily for the human consumption of their meat. This is usually supplied in whole-carcass form, though value-added products such as sausages or chipolatas are also produced. Rabbit meat is mainly sold through European-style butchers and restaurants, with a limited market also in produce markets and supermarkets.
The near-white meat from farmed rabbits varies considerably from the darkish meat of wild rabbits, with farmed rabbit meat selling for a premium over wild meat.
Commercialisation of the by-products of meat production for humans is developing and currently includes;
- Pet food made from the lower quality meat offcuts; and
- Rabbit pelts used in clothing, particularly hats
(Source: ‘Emerging Animal and Plant Industries – their value to Australia’; Foster, Jahan and Smith; RIRDC Publication Number 05/154. ‘Distribution Of Meat Products From Prospective Australian Animal Industries’, Bodger and Goulding, RIRDC Publication Number 03/023)
Global Perspective
Global rabbit meat consumption in 2004 was 1.1 million tonnes. Approximately half of this amount comes from farms.
China is the largest producer of rabbit meat, constituting approximately 40% of global production. Most of the remainder of global production occurs in Europe.
World trade of rabbit meat averaged US$138 million (2005 dollars) over the three years to 2003. China accounts for approximately a quarter of world exports, with The Netherlands, Germany, Japan, Switzerland, the United States and other European countries being the major importing nations.
(Source: ‘Emerging Animal and Plant Industries – their value to Australia’; Foster, Jahan and Smith; RIRDC Publication Number 05/154. ‘Distribution Of Meat Products From Prospective Australian Animal Industries’, Bodger and Goulding, RIRDC Publication Number 03/023)Current Structure and Performance of the Australian Industry
As of 2002-03 Australia has 185 commercial scale rabbit farms with an average size of 100 breeding does, as well as 21 facilities that process rabbit either exclusively or in combination with other species.
The industry’s gross value of production in 2003-04 was $2.2 million, of which a small component was derived from the sale of rabbit meat by-products, chiefly pelts and pet food. Rabbit meat production for human consumption in 2003-04 was estimated to be in the range of 157-250 tonnes, a significant increase over previous years but still far below the peak wild harvesting of around 3000 tonnes in the early 1990s, before the release of the calicivirus. Current rabbit meat supply is far below estimates of domestic and export demand, which given that no rabbit meat is imported into Australia, is encouraging Australian producers to expand production.
Exports of rabbit meat peaked in 1991-92 at 1081 tonnes, however now they have fallen to negligible levels and essentially all rabbit meat is consumed domestically.
Around three-quarters of rabbit production occurs in New South Wales, particularly in the north-west and central regions, though the original rabbit farms were established in Western Australia during the 1980s.
The farming of rabbits is administered at the State level and is operated in accordance with relevant legislation and the ‘Model Code of Practice for the Welfare of Animals - Intensive Husbandry of Rabbits’ developed by the CSIRO.
(Source: ‘Emerging Animal and Plant Industries – their value to Australia’; Foster, Jahan and Smith; RIRDC Publication Number 05/154. ‘Distribution Of Meat Products From Prospective Australian Animal Industries’, Bodger and Goulding, RIRDC Publication Number 03/023)
Links to Additional Information
Industry Associations
Government Agencies
- Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation
- NSW Department of Primary Industries
- Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries and Water
- CSIRO
Reports
These two reports from the Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation provide a particularly good overview of rabbit production in Australia (in addition to other animals);