Scientific research  reveals that beef and sheepmeat primal cuts, when stored and transported at the correct temperatures, consistently achieve the shelf-lives as shown in the following table. 

Shelf life of Australian beef and lamb primal cuts  

	Sheepmeat	Beef
Chilled	6-10 weeks for vaccum-packed items Up to 16 weeks for gas flushed items	10-12 weeks
Frozen	18-24 months	18-24 months

However, in the commercial arena, many Australian exporters provide microbiological evidence to their customers indicating that the shelf-life of their products can exceed those stated above.