A CSIRO report claims Australia’s red meat industry will miss its much-publicised target to be carbon neutral by 2030.

Meat and Livestock Australia managing director Jason Strong said the industry was only missing its mark by 10 per cent and better take-up of new abatement programs would help it over the line.

The red meat industry decided in 2017 to set a target that would create a key point of difference for Australian beef, lamb and goat in a competitive global protein market.

The CSIRO report, calculating emissions from 1990 to 2020, showed the industry’s footprint would grow by 12.2 megatonnes of CO2, equivalent to 63.5 megatonnes in 2030.

The industry is also using other natural sequestration assets in its calculations to achieving carbon neutrality, including trees on farm, soil carbon storage, and savannah burning management.