Live export trade divides Australia
Wed 19 October 2011
Kaisa Suomalainen, Bachelor of Journalism
Evidence of animal cruelty from overseas slaughterhouses has put Australia’s live export industry under pressure, and raised a continuing debate between ethics and economy.
On August 18, 2011, the Federal Parliament voted down two bills to ban the live export trade.
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie proposed to phase out the trade by 2014, and Australian Greens MP Adam Bandt wanted to end the trade immediately.
To the disappointment of animal welfare groups, Mr Wilkie and Mr Bandt were the only members who voted in favour of the bills.
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) Queensland appeals and campaigns manager Felicity Shand said the RSPCA was not giving up, even though Parliament rejected the ban.
“RSPCA’s next step is to encourage the Federal Government to agree to insist that all exported animals are stunned prior to slaughter,” Miss Shand said.
Several MPs have now given notice that they wanted to progress the legislation of better protection of live export animals, including stunning all animals before slaughter.
Miss Shand said the RSPCA was fundamentally opposed to exporting live animals regardless of the destination, so banning the trade to some countries and continuing to others was not applicable.
“The export of live sheep, cattle and goats for slaughter has serious welfare problems,” Miss Shand said.
“Some relate to the transport conditions resulting in high mortalities and others relate to the lack of control over what happens to animals once they reach the importing countries.”
Miss Shand said the RSPCA supported the switch from live animal trade to frozen meat trade, and the improvement of humane slaughter in Australia.
“The highest animal welfare option is the adoption of a chilled and frozen meat trade, which would prevent the suffering from long-distance sea transport and provide statutory protections under the law for the animal welfare, handling and slaughter,” Miss Shand said.
A Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) spokeswoman who did not wish to be named said there was a regular demand for both frozen meat products and live animals in South-East Asia and Middle East, but the exports had different target groups.
“These food sources are complementary and serve different needs of consumers,” she said.
“Live animals supply protein to the poorer members of the community who purchase meat from fresh markets while chilled and frozen meat products service the higher end hotels, restaurants and supermarket chains.”
The Australian live export industry has been a target of media attention since Animals Australia inspected 11 Indonesian abattoirs in March, 2011.
The results, which were presented in the RSPCA’s report , showed the abattoirs breached international animal welfare standards.
In the inspected slaughterhouses, the cattle were handled brutally and in many cases animals were tortured before slaughter.
The Federal Government banned live exports to Indonesia after the investigation was published at the end of May, 2011, but the ban was lifted after a month.
The MLA spokeswoman said livestock trade to Indonesia was vital to the Australian economy, especially in the north where many people depended on it.
“For many northern cattle producers the trade to Indonesia is the only viable option for their cattle,” she said.
“We also know that demand from Indonesia and other countries help to underpin livestock prices right across the country.
“The cattle trade alone was worth almost $A700 million last year and adds 7.8 cents per kilogram to all cattle sold nationwide.”
Queensland Beef Situation Analysis 2010 said Australia was the second largest beef exporter in 2009, after Brazil exporting 19.5 per cent of the world’s beef and veal.
The billion-dollar live export industry employed around 10,000 people in rural and regional Australia in 2010.
Although the industry claimed bans would increase unemployment, Animals Australia executive director Glenys Oogjes disagreed.
“ACIL Tasman's reviews into the live sheep trade found that phasing out live sheep exports would have minimal impact on farmers and would in fact reap greater benefits for farmers and the economy through increased processing in Australia,” Ms Oogjes said.
Since the unsuccessful vote in August, 2011, Animals Australia has revealed more material showing animal cruelty in overseas slaughterhouses.
In the most recent video from Israel, published online by The Age, an animal handler beat the cattle with a spike-tipped pole.
Australia exported over 43,000 cattle to Israel last year.
The material was provided to Animals Australia by an Israeli group called Anonymous for Animal Rights.
Animals Australia’s earlier video showed how sheep were hoisted from their legs in Turkish slaughterhouses and their throats were cut while they were still conscious. 
Ms Oogjes said it was not absolutely certain if the animals in the video were from Australia, but it was very likely.
“Animals Australia was not able to confirm the origin of animals in the footage obtained although the veterinarian at one of the major abattoirs in the video footage stated that the sheep being shackled and slaughtered were Australian,” Ms Oogjes said.
Ms Oogjes said Animals Australia would continue investigating in overseas slaughterhouses and publishing more footage until the live export trade was banned.
“Providing evidence of cruelty has, and will, make a difference as our decision makers have repeatedly claimed that they oppose cruelty, as does the Australian community,” Ms Oogjes said.
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Submitted Comments
Why doesn't the MLA spokeswoman want to be named?
melinda
The Australian Federal Government has issued a new permit that all exporters in Australia must adhere to. They say that this permit will allow export trading to continue bringing the money to the Australian economy, while also protecting the wellbeing of the animals being exported. But with only some of the Indonesian abattoirs agreeing to this out of goodwill and not by law, who knows what will happen once the livestock leaves Australian soil.
Sarah MacDonald