Live sheep export phaseout puts middle east cattle exports at risk

Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt has consistently said the live cattle export trade has the full support of the Federal Labor government and is not in any danger of facing a phase-out like its sheep counterpart.

There are people in the industry who are not buying it and say the government has missed the point.

One of the largest markets for WA southern rangeland cattle and a destination for sheep, the Middle East, has several customers saying they will no longer take cattle from Australia if they cannot also buy sheep.

These are destinations for multibreed consignments, meaning they buy live sheep and cattle and these share the boat journey, however, the industry said it was sheep that sold the boats.

Western Australian Livestock Exporters' Association (WALEA) said it was very disappointing the government was failing to address the issue properly and what it would mean for WA cattle producers.

"Middle Eastern customers have confirmed as saying if we want to be supplying the cattle, they require the sheep to be able to be exported as well," said WALEA chairman John Cunnington.

"They have stated they can and will source the cattle from other areas, i.e. South America or Portugal.

"But the sheep are the driver for why they take the cattle from Australia."

Speaking at the Northern Territory Cattleman's Association meeting in Darwin last month, Mr Watt reiterated the government's support of the live cattle trade, but also made several comments eluding to the northern cattle industry and shorter voyage times.

"Our support exists for many reasons, but chief among them is the fact that live cattle exports are a cornerstone industry for Northern Australia, contributing more than $1 billion to the national economy each year," Mr Watt said.

"An industry that delivers vital jobs and opportunities - including to indigenous Australians - in some of the most remote corners of our country.

He said it was "an industry with a strong commitment to animal welfare, recording far lower mortality rates than live sheep exports".

"Which is not surprising, given the comparatively much shorter voyages and much hardier species being shipped," Mr Watt said.

"These are important differences with the live sheep export industry."

Farm Weekly asked the minister/DAFF if they believed live cattle exports from WA would be compromised by the phase-out of the live sheep trade.

"The department is the regulator of live animal exports and is aware how animals are exported," a DAFF spokesperson said.

It said Mr Watt "appointed an independent panel to consult with stakeholders, including on this matter".

"The export of live cattle from southern WA ports can continue after the phase-out of live sheep occurs," the spokesperson said.

"Cattle-only voyages occur now and can continue into the future."

Many in the industry aren't convinced the government knows about the cattle export configuration from WA.

Mr Cunnington said the idea the cattle industry, which relies on the live sheep export trade for transport, could book its own vessel had not been thought out or investigated thoroughly enough.

People within the industry say the length of the journey required the larger vessels that carried sheep and cattle - not cattle only, as they are designed for longer travel.

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To put this into perspective, Livecorp has Australian Bureau of Statistics figures that show, in 2022, Australia exported a total of 1,126,584 livestock by sea and air, consisting of 590,098 cattle, 524,908 sheep, 4895 goats and 5155 buffalo.

The total value of livestock exported from Australia in 2022 was about $1.3 billion - being $1.2b for cattle, $82 million for sheep, $3.9m for goats and $4.8m for buffalo

All figures are free on board (FOB) and in Australian dollars.

In 2022, Australia exported a total of 590,098 head of cattle - being 136,878 head for breeding and 453,220 head for feeder and slaughter purposes.

The value of cattle exported in 2022 was:

$464 million for dairy cattle (37 per cent of the total).

$795m for beef cattle for slaughter (63pc of the total).

The largest markets for beef cattle, for both breeder and slaughter purposes, exported from Australia in 2022 were:

Indonesia: 331,991 head (73pc of all beef cattle).

Vietnam: 55,989 (12pc of all beef cattle).

Israel: 28,262 (6pc of all beef cattle).

The largest markets for dairy cattle exported from Australia in 2022 were:

China: 127,625 head (93pc of all dairy cattle)

Malaysia: 4,086 head (3pc of all dairy cattle)

Destinations for sheep and cattle exported from Australia are:

Sheep: Bahrain, China, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Oman, Qatar, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Beef cattle: Brunei, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Philippines, Qatar, Russia, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

Dairy cattle: China, Pakistan and Russia.

From these figures most notable for southern WA is the 28,262 cattle that would be exported to Israel, no longer being able to be sold into that market, while other markets could include Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, UAE and Pakistan.

"The Australian Government has only committed to phasing-out live sheep exports from Australia by sea," a DAFF spokesperson said.

"The phase-out does not apply to other livestock exports industries, such as live cattle exports, nor does it apply to live sheep exports by air.

"The Australian Government supports the live cattle trade."

People in the WA cattle industry have said the government needs to look at the damage this phase-out policy would do to not only the WA sheep industry, but also the local cattle industry.

They have said the announcement to phase-out live sheep exports by sea had an immediate impact on both the sheep and cattle markets, with Nutrien Livestock State manager Leon Giglia saying agents could see first-hand what it was doing to WA markets.

"We are starting to see the impact on cattle sales now," Mr Giglia said.

"In particular some of these mid-range bulls, that would normally be exported, are coming onto the domestic slaughter market and are taking up space.

"This is already happening, it is already occurring and this is based off an announcement of a policy written for the sheep trade.

"This flow-on effect for cattle is definitely something that has been overlooked and not properly considered."

Mr Giglia said it was something that required proper attention and action to mitigate the potential loss of another important livestock industry.

Many in the industry are calling for the government to properly address this issue and prove they are committed to all areas of the live cattle industry, not just the northern areas, including Mr Watts home State of Queensland.