The Facts Relating To Australias Live Sheep Export Industry
August 20, 2010 by admin
Filed under General Articles
The live sheep export business is an essential market to Australia, providing a vital marketplace for sheep producers to sell their live sheep exports to and underpinning the domestic sheep farming market.
The majority of sheep are exported from the port of Fremantle in Western Australia, with {nearly} three quarters of Australian sheep exported from this port in 2009. {More than} 50% of sheep from the sheep production market in Western Australia are exported live overseas, making the business specifically crucial towards the Western Australian economy. Other ports that export live sheep {consist of} Portland and Port Adelaide.
Australian sheep are exported to places across the Middle East, primarily Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar as well as the UAE. In 2009 {more than} 3.5 million sheep were exported to these locations, with Kuwait taking 950,000 head and and Bahrain taking 747,000 head of sheep respectively. The number of sheep exported in 2009 represented a drop of 15% on the previous year, with demand for that live export of sheep far outstripping supply within the Australian sheep production business last year. This has resulted in calls for that sheep farming market to rebuild sheep flocks within the coming years.
In 2009 the live export of sheep contributed A$323 million towards the Australian economy.
Australia also has a live cattle export market and a live goat export business, primarily exporting to {nations} throughout South East Asia. Indonesia could be the primary industry for your live cattle export market, and Malaysia may be the primary marketplace for your live goat export business. The live cattle export business contributed A$662 million towards the Australian economy in 2009, as well as the live goat export market contributed A$11.5 million.
Australia is also involved within the meat export business, exporting chilled and frozen beef, sheep and goat meat items to {nations} across the world in addition to exporting livestock. This really is mainly because {there’s} demand for red meat goods {too} as livestock from overseas {nations}, and Meat and Livestock Australia invests in promoting all of these items to {buyers} overseas.
That is why arguments that Australia could cease supplying live sheep exports and replace them with sheep meat exports {aren’t} realistic. The two trades are complementary, and {it’s} not as easy as replacing one trade with the other as they serve the needs of various {buyers} in Middle Eastern markets.
Meat and Livestock Australia and LiveCorp invest heavily in improving the welfare of sheep, cattle and goats throughout the live exports market.
This investment involves programs to increase the welfare of live sheep exports once they arrive inside the Middle East. This includes employing a team of animal welfare experts that function with neighborhood veterinarians, stockmen, truck drivers, feedlot operators and port staff to enhance how Australian sheep are cared for within the region.
This team {offers} training courses to nearby workers, upgrades facilities and installs new equipment and infrastructure to enhance the care of Australian sheep overseas.
Highlights of this function in 2009 included the development of a sheep trolley, which assists nearby workers within the Middle East to move sheep humanely and efficiently. The trolleys have been distributed to each major importing country inside the region and permit sheep {to become} comfortably wheeled from feedlots to processing facilities.
It also included the installation of new port discharge facilities in Kuwait, which have ensured sheep are able {to become} unloaded in Shuwaikh Port safely and securely.
This function has made a considerable difference for the welfare of live sheep exports from Australia, and also the live sheep export market is committed to continuing to increase animal welfare within the {nations} we export to.