Rabbit farmers see boon in growing global meat market
BUSINESS REPORTER
The Zimbabwe Commercial Rabbit Breeders Association (ZICORBA) says local cuniculture producers have to increase their production to capitalise on an anticipated spike in global consumption of rabbit meat.
ZICORBA President Regis Nyamakanga said the global meat market was expected to surge to 1.8m tonnes over the next three years from 1.5m tonnes.
A recent report by market research firm IndexBox showed that market volume for rabbit meat globally was expected to expand by 2,3% compound annual growth rate to reach 1,8 million tonnes by the end of 2025.
“The anticipated growth in global demand for rabbit meat presents boundless opportunities for local rabbit producers to ramp up their production and take advantage of the expanding market for rabbit meat globally,” Nyamakanga told Bunny World.
In its latest report, IndexBox said China would retain its position as the biggest consumer of rabbit meat globally, followed by North Korea and Egypt.
“China was the main market for rabbit meat in the last couple of years, accounting for 62% (925,000 tonnes) of the world’s total consumption (1.5 million tonnes), followed by North Korea (154,000 tonnes) and Egypt (57,000 tonnes),” the research firm said.
Driven by increasing demand for rabbit meat worldwide, the market is expected to continue an upward consumption trend over the next six years, according to IndexBox.
In terms of production, China leads the top (932,000 tonnes), accounting for 63% of the world’ rabbit meat production. North Korea ranks second (154,000 tonnes), while Spain came third with a production of 57,000 tonnes and a 3.9% market share. IndexBox analysis showed that the global rabbit meat production is likely to see steady growth in the near future.
Nyamakanga said Zimbabwe was aiming to be among the top three rabbit producing nations in Africa over the next three years.
Zimbabwe’s rabbit industry is on the ascend with the recent opening of the country’s first rabbit abattoir. The US$1m abattoir, is one of the biggest in Africa.
The Harare-based rabbit meat processing facility, which was commissioned in September last year, has a capacity to slaughter between 2.5 tonnes and 3.5 tonnes of rabbit per eight-hour shift per day.
Recently, Botswana tapped into the expertise of the Zimbabwe’s rabbit industry as it seeks to establish the first rabbit abattoir in Francistown.
