Beef and lamb exports fell in November, as the amount of meat sold dropped heavily compared with last year's record season, Statistics New Zealand said today.

Meat and edible offal exports fell $158 million (31 percent) from November 2015, contributing to a $219 million (5.4 percent) fall in overall exports.

Beef exports fell 41 percent in value and 31 percent in quantity, and lamb exports fell 27 percent in value and 23 percent in quantity.

"Beef exports to the United States, our top beef export destination, fell by around half when compared to November last year" senior manager Jason Attewell said. "When compared to the same month of the previous year, the value of beef exports to the US have fallen in nearly every month since October 2015, only rising once in April 2016."