An open letter from ASHEEP & BEEF group chairman, David Vandenberghe and executive officer, Sarah Brown, to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt.
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It is clear that your announcement to end live sheep exports in less than four years, with just $107 million transition funding over five years, is designed to gut Western Australia's sheep industry.
We are disgusted by your aggression toward Western Australia's rural businesses and communities.
It does not take much to see that there is no way to lift onshore processing capacity to meet existing demand within four years.
Your plan is a persecution of hard working, good people, who do not deserve this treatment.
You target all sheep producers and industry in WA, including many who have adapted their businesses away from selling into live export.
Your intentness to destroy confidence in our industry through poor policy, interference and lack of transparency has been hugely damaging already and has significantly disrupted our market at a time when we are also faced with drought.
You target our beef producers who rely on the same service providers as the sheep industry and who export cattle on mixed sheep consignments out of WA.
The impact of your decisions will be felt for generations to come in our communities and on our farmland. It is evident from your disdain that you do not care.
ASHEEP & BEEF attended the briefing Minister Watt delivered on Saturday, May 11, to announce the phase-out plan.
Mr Vandenberghe raised that there are currently 500,000 sheep in WA with no market and limited feed, your announcement will add to this tally.
What do we do with these sheep now?
Minister Watt replied that - these are issues we will keep working with the industry on.
How do you intend to work with us?
Will we be involved in selecting the transition advocate?
What are we transitioning to and how do you suppose we transition?
Your one-page transition plan is light on detail.
We need capacity to process an extra million sheep in WA to meet current needs.
Please explain to us how you are going to do that in four years?
The funding package and timeframe is vastly insufficient.
We have a livestock industry that produces world class food and sustainable fibre.
It is an asset to Australia and it is worth decent treatment.
