At a glance
- New Zealand had approximately 3.8 million beef cattle at 30 June 2025, up 4% from the previous year.
- MPI expects meat and wool export revenue to reach NZ$14.1 billion in the year to 30 June 2026.
- More than 90% of New Zealand beef and sheepmeat is exported, giving local meat products an established international reputation.
- New Zealand does not publish a reliable standalone value for its beef jerky market, so overseas market figures should not be presented as local data.
- Commercial jerky and biltong production must use a validated food-safety process. Under MPI’s current biltong guidance, every finished batch must achieve a water activity below 0.85 aw.
Beef jerky makes sense in New Zealand. We raise world-class cattle, have a strong culture of tramping, camping, hunting and road trips, and understand the value of food that travels well. Jerky is lightweight, shelf stable when properly manufactured, rich in flavour and easy to portion qualities that suit everything from a backcountry hut to a busy workday.
The modern category has also moved well beyond the anonymous, overly salty packet beside the service-station till. Today’s customer can choose from tender beef strips, traditional biltong, venison snacks, meat sticks and locally flavoured small-batch products. Packaging, provenance and texture matter almost as much as the recipe.
For New Zealand food businesses, the opportunity is real but exacting. Meat is expensive, dehydration reduces saleable weight, and ready-to-eat meat demands disciplined food-safety controls. A good brand therefore needs a repeatable process, accurate claims and a product good enough to justify its price.
The New Zealand beef jerky industry in context
There is no robust public dataset that isolates the value of beef jerky sold in New Zealand. Jerky sits within broader processed-meat, snack and retail categories, while proprietary market reports often combine New Zealand with Australia or the wider Asia-Pacific region. Quoting a North American market size as though it represents Aotearoa would be misleading.
The surrounding industry, however, is substantial. According to Stats NZ agricultural production data, the national beef herd reached approximately 3.8 million cattle in June 2025. MPI’s June 2026 Situation and Outlook for Primary Industries forecasts meat and wool exports of NZ$14.1 billion for 2025/26, reflecting strong international prices even as some export volumes ease.
That scale gives jerky producers a respected raw material and a powerful origin story. Beef + Lamb New Zealand reports that more than 90% of New Zealand beef and sheepmeat goes overseas. Jerky turns a small part of that established export strength into a convenient, higher-value product.
The category is wider than beef. Venison can support a premium position, while lamb offers a flavour closely connected to New Zealand. MPI recorded NZ$206 million in venison export revenue in the year to June 2025. Every species and formulation needs its own costing and validated process.
From basic meat snack to premium local product
Jerky once tended to be treated as a practical item: salty, chewy, long lasting and bought mainly at a petrol station or outdoor store. Practicality still sells, but the market has become more sophisticated.
Customers now compare meat origin, ingredients, protein and sodium values, texture, smoke profile and pack design. Resealable pouches, trial packs and clear nutrition information make the category easier to use, while direct sales let small producers explain their sourcing and process.
Flavour has become a point of difference. Black pepper, chilli, teriyaki and smoky barbecue remain familiar, but a New Zealand range can go further with carefully developed profiles such as mānuka smoke, horopito heat, cracked pepper and garlic, or a restrained honey-soy marinade. The goal is not to add a Kiwi reference for decoration. The ingredient should improve the eating experience and any local or origin claim must be true.
Texture is equally important. One customer wants a tender strip; another wants a dry, traditional chew. Biltong customers may expect a thicker cut and different balance of acidity, spice and fat. A premium price and New Zealand provenance create equally premium expectations.
Why jerky suits the New Zealand lifestyle
Jerky’s core advantages line up naturally with how many New Zealanders spend their time. A properly manufactured shelf-stable product is compact, does not squash like a sandwich and can be eaten without preparation. That makes it useful for tramping, camping, fishing, hunting, cycling, farming, construction work, school-holiday travel and the glovebox snack supply.
The outdoor audience is not a marketing invention. The Department of Conservation reported more than 400,000 campsite nights in the 2024/25 season, up more than 10% on the previous year. Around 60% of Great Walk hut bookings were made by New Zealanders. That does not tell us how much jerky trampers buy, but it demonstrates a large, active audience for lightweight and durable food.
Convenience matters away from the track too. Jerky can sit in a desk drawer, work vehicle or gym bag. A validated shelf-stable product can also move through ordinary retail and courier networks without a cold chain, provided its packaging and storage conditions protect it. A tramper, premium-grocery shopper and gym customer may value different attributes, so the strongest products start with a defined audience.
What Kiwi customers value and what puts them off
Taste comes first. Provenance may earn the first purchase, but flavour and texture earn the second. A successful jerky needs a clear meat flavour, balanced seasoning and the chew promised on the label. Excess surface moisture, hard edges, pockets of fat or a stale flavour quickly undermine trust.
Customers also value clarity: the type and origin of the meat, what has been added, serving size and allergens. A short ingredient list can be attractive, but “short” does not automatically mean safe or healthy. Every ingredient must be declared correctly.
Nutrition requires a balanced message. Jerky can contain substantial protein, but it is also a processed meat and recipes can be high in sodium. The New Zealand Heart Foundation advises limiting or avoiding processed meat and notes that adults should consume less than 2,000 milligrams of sodium a day. A responsible brand should therefore avoid presenting jerky as an unlimited health food.
Factual nutrition marketing is still possible, but claims must be product-specific. Food Standards Australia New Zealand requires claims such as “high protein” or “low fat” to meet defined criteria. Laboratory testing may be the most dependable route when dehydration and marinade uptake make calculations unreliable.
Price is another barrier. Customers understand dried meat costs more than fresh meat, but still judge the amount, cut and eating experience. Value should come from real attributes—sourcing, flavour, batch quality and convenience not oversized packaging.
Beef, venison and lamb: where the product opportunities lie
Beef is the most familiar base for jerky, with broad flavour appeal and a strong local supply story. Lean, consistently trimmed meat generally dries more predictably, but cut selection cannot be based on price alone: tenderness, fibre direction, slice thickness and finished yield all matter.
Venison offers a distinctive premium proposition connected to New Zealand’s farmed-deer industry and outdoor culture. Lamb can also stand apart in a category crowded with beef. Both require careful fat management, yield costing and validation for the actual cut and formulation.
Biltong is related to jerky but should not be treated as the same product. Biltong is generally marinated, acidified and air dried without a cooking step, whereas many jerky processes use heat as part of pathogen control. New Zealand Food Safety describes biltong as a high-risk, uncooked, ready-to-eat meat product. A biltong recipe cannot simply be relabelled as jerky to avoid the controls appropriate to the process.
Meat sticks, shredded products and mixed packs create further options, but changes in size, casing, formulation or heat treatment can alter the hazard profile. Each format needs technical review.
New Zealand provenance as a commercial advantage
New Zealand’s pasture-based farming story is valuable because it reflects much of the sector. Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s nutrition guide is based on beef and lamb raised on pasture in New Zealand.
Manufacturers still need evidence for claims such as “grass-fed”, “regenerative”, “natural” or “sustainable”. Supplier declarations, traceability records and clear specifications protect both the claim and the brand.
Environmental language needs particular care. AgResearch’s full life-cycle study found New Zealand beef and sheepmeat at the lower end of published global carbon-footprint estimates. That is a credible and useful finding, but it does not mean every product is carbon neutral or impact free. The Commerce Commission says environmental claims must be accurate, scientifically sound and substantiated.
Origin claims deserve the same discipline. Once a business says “New Zealand beef” or “made in New Zealand”, the overall presentation must accurately convey where the essential ingredients came from and where the defining manufacturing took place.
How commercial dehydration creates consistency
Dehydration is part of a controlled preservation process. Temperature, humidity, airflow, slice thickness, loading, marinade, meat composition and time all influence moisture removal.
Inconsistent drying creates quality and safety risks. If the outside dries too quickly, it can form a hard layer around a wetter centre known as case hardening. Touching pieces and surface fat can also slow moisture movement.
A purpose-built commercial meat dehydrator helps control airflow and temperature, document settings and repeat successful batches. Consider usable capacity, airflow, cleanability, food-contact materials, control accuracy, service support and production records.
Base capacity on peak raw-meat volume, realistic drying time and measured yield. A machine that handles trials may become a bottleneck once slicing, marinating, drying, cooling and packing share the week.
Equipment supports a safe process; it does not create one. Recipe, validated lethality or hurdle steps, water activity, hygiene, packaging and storage must work together.
Food safety is the non-negotiable
Ready-to-eat dried meat can support harmful microbes if it is poorly designed or processed. Drying alone is not proof that pathogens have been controlled, and appearance cannot confirm water activity.
The regulatory route depends on the product, process, sales channel and whether it is exported. Start with MPI’s My Food Rules tool and consult the registration authority or verifier before launch.
MPI introduced a specific biltong card in 2025 for businesses operating under the applicable Simply Safe and Suitable template Food Control Plan or My Food Plan. Among other requirements, the current card says producers using that pathway must:
- use beef, lamb or venison from an eligible registered New Zealand meat processor;
- use specified fresh or appropriately frozen hindquarter meat;
- marinate at 5°C or below for at least 10 hours;
- use at least 30 grams of vinegar and 30 grams of salt per kilogram of meat; and
- demonstrate that every batch finishes below 0.85 aw.
Water activity must be checked using an appropriate meter, laboratory testing or MPI’s validated percentage-weight-loss method. Results need records, and storage must keep the product below the required level throughout shelf life. Read the full MPI Making Biltong guidance rather than relying on this summary.
Those rules do not automatically cover cooked jerky, droëwors or other dried meats. Jerky commonly uses a validated heat step as well as drying, while some uncooked products require a custom Food Control Plan. The product name does not change the hazard.
A 2024 New Zealand recall involved multiple dried and cured meat products made without required controls. It is a direct reminder that food-safety systems protect customers and the category.
Labels and packaging have to do real work
Packaging must protect the product from contamination, oxygen and moisture as required and maintain its validated shelf life. A resealable closure does not prove indefinite safety after opening; instructions should come from shelf-life evidence.
Retail labels generally need a product name, lot identification, supplier name and physical New Zealand or Australian address, ingredients, allergens, net contents, date marking when required and a Nutrition Information Panel. See MPI’s retail food-labelling guide.
Allergens can enter through sauces, sesame, milk ingredients or seasoning blends. “Gluten free” and similar claims need recipe, supplier and cross-contact evidence. Declarations must follow the current Food Standards Code.
Front-of-pack claims about nutrition, production, origin and environmental impact must be supportable. Clear language builds more trust than a crowded row of badges.
Routes to market in New Zealand
Direct online sales give producers control over education, bundles and customer feedback while providing national reach without supermarket shelf space. NZ Post reported online retail spending above NZ$12.7 billion in 2025, with domestic retailers receiving nearly 80%.
Independent butchers, outdoor stores, gyms, breweries, specialty grocers and farm shops can be strong launch partners. Sampling is especially useful because texture is difficult to convey on a label.
Service stations suit the grab-and-go format, but placement, distribution and promotional costs belong in the price model. Supermarkets offer reach, yet major groups retain more than 80% of national grocery retail sales. Understand ranging, fees, promotions, supply commitments and payment terms before signing.
Food-service customers may want larger packs for platters or minibars and will expect traceability and dependable supply. Export is also possible, but domestic compliance is not an export passport. Destination countries may impose additional establishment, certification, ingredient and labelling requirements, so planning should begin with MPI.
Commercial opportunities and threats
The largest variable cost is meat. Current strong beef prices benefit farmers and exporters but challenge jerky processors whose customers may resist price increases.
Yield magnifies the issue: water and trim are removed, so a kilogram of raw beef never produces a kilogram of jerky. Cost recipes from measured yield, including labour, energy, testing, packaging, freight, retailer margin and rejected product.
Seasonal humidity, slice thickness, overloading and recipe changes can alter drying time and texture. Specifications and batch records reveal variation before customers do.
Competition includes imported jerky, local biltong, meat sticks, protein bars, nuts and plant-based snacks. A New Zealand flag is not enough. Brands need better flavour, trustworthy sourcing, superior texture, a useful format or a strong community connection—and every product must be safe and profitable.
The outlook for New Zealand jerky
New Zealand’s beef jerky industry is unlikely to match the scale of North America, and it does not need to. Its advantage is a credible red-meat supply, recognised provenance and customers who understand portable outdoor food.
The strongest businesses will treat jerky as both food manufacturing and brand building: specified meat, validated processing, controlled water activity, managed sodium and allergens, tested shelf life, honest labels and consistent texture.
For butchers and meat companies, jerky can add value and open new channels. For entrepreneurs, it can start regionally and travel nationwide. For exporters, it is a compact expression of New Zealand’s red-meat story when market access and compliance are handled properly.
If you are planning a new jerky product or need to move beyond small trial batches, explore Bench Foods commercial dehydrators for New Zealand producers and discuss your meat type, process, batch size and production goals before selecting equipment.
Our Sources and Resources
Ministry for Primary Industries – Situation and Outlook for Primary Industries, June 2026. Current New Zealand food-and-fibre export forecasts, including meat and wool.
Stats NZ – Agricultural Production Statistics: Year to June 2025. National livestock numbers, including New Zealand’s beef-cattle herd.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand – Stock Number Survey at 30 June 2025. Beef and sheep numbers, regional changes and production outlook.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand – Market Insight and Consumer Research. Context for New Zealand’s export-focused beef and sheepmeat sector.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand – Nutrition Guide. Nutrient information for beef and lamb raised on pasture in New Zealand.
AgResearch – Research on the Carbon Footprint of New Zealand Beef and Sheepmeat. Summary of the peer-reviewed, full life-cycle assessment.
Department of Conservation – Great Walk, Hut and Campsite Demand, March 2026. New Zealand outdoor-accommodation and domestic-booking data.
New Zealand Food Safety – My Food Rules. Tool for identifying the Food Control Plan, National Programme, registration and verification requirements applying to a food business.
New Zealand Food Safety – Making Biltong Guidance, December 2025. Current process, sourcing, marination, water-activity and record-keeping rules under the applicable template pathway.
New Zealand Food Safety – Dried and Cured Meat Recall, August 2024. Official recall notice explaining the risk created by inadequate process controls.
New Zealand Food Safety – Labelling Food for Retail Sale. Requirements for product identification, ingredients, dates, supplier details, nutrition information and claims.
Food Standards Australia New Zealand – Nutrition Content and Health Claims. Rules governing claims such as “high protein” and other nutrition or health statements.
Heart Foundation New Zealand – Is Eating Meat Good for You?. New Zealand guidance on red meat, processed meat and sodium.
Commerce Commission – Environmental Claims. Guidance on making accurate, specific and substantiated sustainability claims.
NZ Post Business IQ – Growth Shifts, Favouring Local Retailers in 2025. New Zealand online retail spending and domestic-retailer trends.
Commerce Commission – State of Grocery Competition Report, June 2026. Current information about New Zealand grocery-market structure.
