Govt exported 1,305 animals under meat trade deal: Latest fiscal data

Legal Slaughter Numbers Show A Marked Spurt

Panaji: In the current financial year, a total of 1,305 animals have been exported by Goa govt under an agreement between Goa Meat Complex Limited (GMCL) and Sunface Agro Foods Pvt Ltd.

The Karnataka-based private firm holds the licence to export buffalo meat from animals slaughtered at GMCL, the state’s designated abattoir at Usgao. This was stated by animal husbandry minister Nilkanth Halarnkar in a reply to a legislative assembly question from Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai on Wednesday.

TOI reported on Feb 3 that Goa made its debut in the international beef export market with shipments to the Middle East being sent through the Goa Meat Complex earlier this year. A total of 28.5 tonnes of frozen beef was loaded in a consignment to Iraq at the time.

Goa has recorded a rise in legal animal slaughter numbers over the past three financial years, with figures from the ongoing fiscal year 2025-26 already surpassing the previous annual totals.

Official records show that 4,729 animals have been slaughtered in the state so far this year.

Besides the 1,305 animals exported, 3,424 animals were slaughtered for the local Goan market. The figures for just the first few months of FY 2025-26 (73 in April, 679 in May, 427 in June, and 126 as of date in July) already account for more than 50% of the previous year’s total.

In comparison, during the entire 2024-25 financial year, a total of 7,722 animals were slaughtered. This included 200 for export, 6,455 for the Goan market, and 1,067 for markets outside Goa.

The current year’s numbers have already far outpaced the 2023-24 figures of 2,389 animals slaughtered in total — of which 2,004 were for the Goan market, 385 were supplied outside the state, and no exports were recorded. That marks nearly a 100% increase in just two years.