Parliament has passed legislation banning live sheep exports from May 2028.
It comes after an independent panel urged the Government to introduce a ban.
The move has been welcomed by animal rights groups including the RSPCA. However, farmers in Western Australia are pushing back against the decision.
Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said the industry is “in long-term decline”.
Background
Live exports refer to the commercial transport of livestock overseas, including sheep and cows.
Australia has legislated measures to support the welfare of animals involved in the live export trade.
Livestock exports are used by countries whose domestic agricultural industries are unable to meet demand for meat.
However, demand for live sheep exports has decreased as other countries expand their “boxed meat” imports from Australia instead.
Sheep exports
Watt has previously said Western Australia is the only part of the country where live sheep are exported. Nearly half of Australia’s live sheep exports by sea go to Kuwait, according to Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA).
Around 600,000 live sheep were exported from WA in the 2022/23 financial year, according to MLA data. Watt said these sales were worth $77 million.
This is down from a peak in 1983, when 7.3 million sheep were exported from Australia, following increased meat demand from Middle Eastern countries.
Animal welfare
Live export practices have faced increased scrutiny over animal welfare concerns.
Over 2,400 sheep died from heat stress and other conditions on their way from WA to the Middle East in 2017. Reforms to limit the risk of heat stress were implemented in 2019.
Earlier this year, an export ship with thousands of livestock on board spent several weeks stranded off the coast of WA in heatwave conditions.
Legislation
In March 2023, the Federal Government appointed an independent panel to examine a proposed ban on live sheep exports.
The panel handed down its final report in October. It recommended a transition away from live sheep exports towards a total ban by 2028.
In May, the Government announced it would accept the recommended ban.
Legislation has now passed both houses of Parliament.
Government comment
The Government has announced a $107 million “phase out transition support” package to assist those impacted by the ban.
Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said the legislation provides “certainty for the sheep industry to make decisions,” ahead of 2028.
Watt said live sheep exports make up ”less than 1%” of WA’s agriculture sector, and that about 70% of the state supports the ban.
Response
The Australian Alliance for Animals welcomed the ban. Director Bridda Jones said exporting sheep “for slaughter is fundamentally inhumane”.
RSPCA Australia CEO Richard Mussell said Australia is “leading the way for animal welfare”.
However, Western Australia Farmers President John Hassell told TDA that farmers are “devastated” by the Government’s decision.
“I think farmers will survive but I think the reality is it’ll kill local communities,” he said.
Hassell said WA Farmers has received over 60,000 signatures as it advocates for the Government to repeal the new legislation. “The fight’s not over,” Hassell said.
Nationals leader and Shadow Agriculture Minister David Littleproud called the live sheep export ban “senseless”.
He said the ban encourages the “destruction” of industries and livelihoods. Littleproud vowed to “reinstate the live sheep export trade” if the Coalition wins the next election.
