Halal meat now accounts for nearly a third of all lamb sales in the UK, according to a new report released today by AHDB.
Farmers could benefit from finding out more about the halal sector and its requirements, the levy organisation's report suggests.
In the UK, as a whole, lamb consumption has been in steady decline during the last two decades.
But for the country's Muslim community, lamb still remains a primary protein source.
AHDB's research assesses the shopping behaviours of halal meat consumers, and is aimed at helping farmers gain a better understanding of products these consumers buy.
The importance of Muslim festivals and key opportunities for the halal meat sector are also included in the report, released on Tuesday (26 November).
While Muslims make up around 6.5% of the UK population, AHDB estimates that they account for 30% of lamb sales in terms of volume.
In 2016, UK Muslims were estimated to have spent £4.64b on halal food and beverages, and by 2023, AHDB estimates that £823m was spent on halal meat alone.
Lamb and mutton consumption is 'very important' to halal consumers; 80% consume lamb weekly and 64% consume mutton weekly, compared with only 6% of the general UK population eating lamb.
Vanessa Adamson, retail insight manager at AHDB, said the report was primarily aimed at farmers, processors and retailers.
"All of those in the supply chain could benefit from learning more about the growing halal market. We hope our research can help drive sales in the sector.”
Awal Fuseini, senior halal sector manager at AHDB, said the organisation was shining a spotlight on the development of the UK’s halal meat sector.
"We believe it presents many opportunities for farmers and processors to diversify their livestock production to cater for the growing demand for halal beef and lamb in the UK.
“Halal meat consumers are a very important component of domestic demand," he said.
